Remember a love long lost
by FanWriter Asher
Summary: Isabella has been a Volturi Guard for over ten centuries. She is strong, she is dangerous and she is beautiful; though Isabella's peaceful life is threatened when taken hostage by a strange Coven of yellow-eyed vampires who try and convince her she is not who she thinks. Now Bella is torn between what she has always known and what these strangers tell her. Who is she really?
1. Chapter 1

**Isabella's POV:**

* * *

It had been some time since I had explored the depths of dungeons. Decades had passed since the last time I had been down here yet I found myself sauntering through the underground maze as if it had been only yesterday, and not the better half of a century.

There had not truthfully been a reason for my lack of visits to the dungeons, other than the fact that they were the dungeons. I disliked the dungeons; too much death and gore and that's coming from someone who gained nutrition from drinking the blood of humans. Now don't get me wrong, I'm all for some fun and torture; there is something strangely euphoric in ending a life, but when you spend days on end trying to get information out of a human, you can grow tiresome of it. It's not as if they last very long either, the poor fragile things.

I did not venture below to the dungeons of my own free will; it was a command from Aro. Alternatively 'Master' as we were forced to call him in his presence. He had requested I head out to the streets of Volterra to find Heidi, who had been far too long collecting Aro's dinner. He grew rather irritable when he was thirsty. Heidi had an ability to appear undeniably attractive to anyone, despite of age, gender or sexuality. It also made it very easy for her to fetch our lunch.

I turned right down yet another narrow and musky corridor; on either side of me, there were lined cages with doors made from the strongest metal known to man. However, it had been many years since the Trio had ordered the imprisonment of one of our own; personally, I believed that Aro enjoyed killing so much. Either way, it did not affect my existence.

Finally, I reached the stone archway that lead to a spiralling staircase; I passed through without hesitation and shot from the bottom of the curving stairwell that met me to the top in less than a second. Reaching back, I pulled my cloak tighter around my throat and lifted the over-sized hood to cover my face, and then I stepped out into the bright light of the sun.

It was midday; this meant the sun was at its highest peak above the clock tower and perhaps the worst time of day for out kind to be outdoors. I did not worry, I knew that if anyone did see the way our skin glistened like diamonds under the light of the sun, they would be dead before they had a chance to accumulate a coherent thought. I turned down the alleyway, trying my best to stick to shadows. Thankfully, I did not have to search very far before I caught Heidi's scent and spotted her heading towards the clock tower with a dozen or two absent-minded humans on her tail.

She was stunning, even I had to admit, with her curling caramel locks and her luscious lips painted red. The same shade as her eyes. She spotted me heading towards her and smiled, "Heidi," I cooed, "We were beginning to wonder if you'd lost your way."

Heidi fluttered her eyelashes at me, "Not at all, dear sister, I was just making some friends." It was as if the human had not even realized I was there. They stood in a circle around Heidi, staring at her with wild and lustful eyes, every one of them. "I've invited them home for lunch." I wrapped my arm through her own and together we lead the humans back to the palace.

Our home was just that: a palace. Unfortunately, for the countless tourists who visited Volterra, they only got to see a small part of it. The majority of our home was underground, in a system of tunnels and secret passageways forged thousands of years ago by our rulers, unbeknownst to the generations of humans that lived above us that their city had never been theirs in the first place.

Once back inside the familiar marble walls, Heidi and I lead the human crowd through the extravagant halls of our home and towards the Throne Room.

As we walked, I noticed the humans all gasping, their mouths hanging open in little 'O's of shock. I often forgot how beautiful our home was until I saw how it looked from a fresh pair of eyes. The place was built from white marble and stone, the furniture ancient and invaluable. The walls were lined with portraits of the Trio's closest 'friends' as Aro liked to call them. They were not friends, the Trio did not have friends; they had favourites and the majority of them were, of course, Gifted. Aro liked to keep note of the vampires he had met in his time who possessed abilities he could one day use. For some unknown reason, he continued to allow most of them to live their own lives peacefully. Personally, I believed Aro was frightened. Frightened that if he just begun taking Gifted vampires and had Chelsea, whose ability was to influence the emotional ties between individuals, sway their loyalty in the direction of him and his guard then others out there may question the Volturi's rule and it could only take a handful of rebellious vampires to stir an uprising.

Wouldn't that be something?

Our masters throne room was located in the highest turret of the palace, the entrance- two large and old mahogany doors - was blocked by Felix and Demetri, two of my highest ranking Guards.

Felix was a brute of a man, made up entirely of muscle and tedious thoughts. He looked like the Incredible Hulk's albino cousin, wearing a badly made black curly wig. Demetri, however, was his complete opposite: a few inches taller than myself, much leaner and lankier than the other Guard's and with a crooked smile I wished I could tear off. He stepped forward and flashed Heidi and I his stupid smile. He ran a hand through his sand-coloured hair and fluttered his unusually long eyelashes that framed his eyes of deep burgundy. Heidi's doing, I realized.

"Heidi," He greeted her, trying to sound more masculine than he usually did. He had been turned in his late teens, meaning that his voice and appearance was still boyish in a way yet he refused to let this affect his attempts at mating with Heidi. Little did he know Heidi favoured Felix.

"Gentleman," She nodded to them, "I've brought lunch."

In a blur of black, Demetri was standing behind the bewildered humans, his pupils dilating at the scent. "Mhmm, my, they do seem rather juicy."

Heidi just gave him her flirtatious smile. "Indeed."

Slut.

"Enough. Open the doors." I demanded. Demetri, of course, had tried to mate with me upon my addition to the guard. I'd contemplated the idea for a time but it was not long until I discovered just how aggravating he was. Since my ascension to Overseer, he had stopped trying. He nodded once to me and headed towards the doors. He also would never refuse an order, not if he wanted to keep his head.

Felix and Demetri opened the doors with an echoing creak and Heidi and I lead the humans to their death.

As we walked further into the throne room, I heard the gasps and shocked voices of the human crowd. The Throne room was by far the most spectacular room in the entire palace. A large, circular three-story chamber.

The room was lit only by the slits in the stonewalls and the large, glass dome skylight overheard. It let enough light in during the day to illuminate the room but not enough to reveal our true nature and set us ablaze as shimmering diamonds statues. The entire room was made of pearly white marble and stone, columns dotted around held up the stone arches and timbers of the roof, statues that were chiselled by the most talented of artists to ever exist; Michelangelo's David failed in comparison to some of them.

The Throne room had archways that branches off to other, smaller rooms furnished with expensive chairs, tables, ancient tapestries that hung on the walls and dozens and dozens of bookcases, filled to the rim with giant, leather-bound tomes. Some of which pre-dated the English language; Aro's private collections. Although the throne room was decorated with only three lone furnishings, the thrones themselves, on which our master sat when acting as magistrates to our kind. The thrones were carved and shaped for each of our masters, made from polished dark oak wood and the finest carving I'd seen in centuries.

From atop a raised dais, the Trio sat patiently. Heidi and I lead the humans down the marble steps and into the slight depression in the centre of the room, none of which had noticed the drainage grate.

Aro was old, older than most of us, and it showed. Not in wrinkles nor age spots like elderly mortals but in the almost chalk-like texture of his porcelain skin, in the way he seemed to belong to the room, like it had been built around him, to suit him; and of course in his eyes. There was wisdom in his dark eyes, wisdom and power hidden behind that milky haze. The corner of his mouth twitched up when he saw me following Heidi inside.

"I apologise for my tardiness, master," Heidi said, "I was making some rather interesting friends." Aro waved off her apology.

"Apologise not, my dear, I can see you truly have." He might as well have licked his lips, but I could not blame him, the humans _did_ look delicious. They stood, still staring. Some of them glanced around the chamber, snapping photographs of the dais and the Trio atop it like they were still visiting tourist destinations. Aro simpered down at me from his throne atop the dais, Caius and Marcus sat on either side of him. " _La mia bella rosa, Isabella."_

" _Maestro," I_ replied, bowing to him. Aro spoke a lot of Italian, I figured it was best to learn the language, if only to please him and get in his good books. It also sounded nice, to hear him say my name in the way he did. My name was Isabella. Just Isabella. I had a last name once, I suppose, but it had been a long time since I had remembered it. I'd forgotten my name prior to Aro turning me, I'd only remembered my first name. _Isabella._

I then turned to Caius and bowed, then again to Marcus. In spite of my position as Overseer the Guard and my close personal relationship with Aro, it seemed that Caius and Marcus― more so Caius, really. Marcus just stared gormlessly into the corner of the room, like he hadn't a clue where he was or what he was doing. I half expected venom to start dripping from his lips like drool― had taken a disliking to me. A disliking or distrust. Aro looked at me and saw pride and gratification whereas Caius's eyes darkened when I stepped into the room, narrowing in on me like he was just itching for an excuse to give the order and have my head ripped from my body.

I'd have liked to see him try.

If I didn't take his head for attempting, Aro certainly would.

Aro and I had a special kinship, more so than he did with any of his other precious children and no one quite understood why. I did not know why, although Aro had always taken a strong liking to me from the moment he turned me. He had been there from the start. I had been a terrified and violent newborn and Aro had taken me aside to his personal chambers, sat me down on his lush mattress and explained to me what I had become. Back then, things had been blurry, incomprehensible yet Aro explained who I had been as a human and why he turned me.

I'd assumed I'd gain some fragments of my lost memory upon ascending to vampirism but if anything my mortal life had faded even more so, slipping further and further into the tiny part of my subconscious that had once been human.

However, I did remember little of my human life. Mostly how I died. I had been a handmaiden to a wealthy lady of noble birth sometime during the early eighth century; I'd fought back when the master of the house had tried to rape me. He'd thrown me against the bed and pinned me there, he'd hit me and bruised me, made me bleed. I'd decided in that moment no man would ever lay a hand on me again, so I reached across the bed to the tray of food I'd set down for the master, snatched up the knife placed atop it and I plunged the knife deep into his throat. I'd pushed past flesh and muscle and dragged the blade harshly across his throat, spilling his hot blood over the both of us, staining my white dress. It had gone in my mouth (It tasted much different back then) and I'd laughed as he fell to the ground, crawling for the door, clutching to the wound I'd made.

I could have left it there, but instead I threw myself atop him and dove that same knife into his back repeatedly until he stopped moving, until I was entirely drenched in his blood. The guards had heard his yells and come charging into the room with their swords drawn but by this time I had already given up on life. They forced open the door just as I threw myself from the tower balcony. My last human memory is that of the sun setting beyond the horizon before the world went black.

The next thing I knew, I was in hell and burning for my crime. That was what I had believed at the time, being a "true" Christian girl. It was only later when I awoke in a cool underground chamber with Aro standing over me that I discovered the truth about my hell. He'd heard my laughter as I leapt from that tower and saw me plunging to the ground. By chance, his curiosity peaked and he'd wondered why I had been laughing as I plummeted to my ultimate demise, so he'd come to see me.

"I stood by your broken body, watching you bleed out, and decided I wished to know why you were so eager to die." Aro said as he retold the story that day. He told me how he'd knelt down and touched my cheek. In that moment he'd expected to understand who I had been and every thought I'd ever had, though instead he came up short. Nothing. He'd thought I had died at first but he could still hear the slow beating of my heart. He had a thought, a risky one but he'd taken that risk and he'd bitten me.

It had been not long after my transformation he identified my Shield and personally aided me in controlling it and adapting to life as a vampire; in some ways, I was Aro's personal project. In one instance, he even referred to me as the daughter he always wanted. This did not plead well with Jane, one of the Volturi's older and somewhat salient Guard members.

Since then Aro and I had been like family, of course we had to keep up pretences with the others, although our kinship was no secret.

The rest was history. Aro and I had been the best of companions; maybe even close enough to use the word 'friend' but there had always been that underlining knowledge between the two of us. That he was the master and I his humble servant, that no matter the time that passed and no matter how close he and I got, he was always my master and if I ever dared to cross him to an unforgivable extent, he would burn me.

I still liked to believe I earned Aro's friendship and my position as Overseer due to my strong, powerful, passionate and overall respectful (not to mention ridiculously hot) demeanour. But I was not gullible. I knew there was another, more obvious reasons behind Aro's kindness and his decision to appoint me the role. I had been gifted, you see, with an ability many would die for! I was a shield. A mental shield and it had been amazing. My mind was impenetrable to any form of a psychic attack; no one could invade my mind unless I allowed for it. Jane had the raw ability of pain inducement. She could inflict an illusion of absolute and intolerable pain that incapacitates them. Rumour had it that few of the unfortunate souls to fall victim to Jane's burning gaze left them mentally instable, scarred to their souls. Fortunately, for I, my built-In shield protected me from her wrath.

My shield also gave me a sense of privacy, something no other guard member had but each of the others craved. Aro had a gift too; a single touch and every thought you had ever had in your entire life, entire existence now belonged to him. He felt what you felt, he heard what you heard, even smelt what you smelt. There were no secrets among the Volturi, not when your Master had access to every impulsive thought.

"Thank you for ensuring Heidi had not forgotten her way." Aro's voice brought me back to today. He liked to play with his words; we all knew Heidi had not forgotten her way. It was as if Aro liked to play the part of a human. Strange.

"It was no matter." I nodded a thank you.

"Please," he said, "Take one of our guests for yourself? If memory serves, you have not fed in almost a fortnight?" It was true, I'd left it long this time and my throat did burn so at the look of the humans, at the idea of tearing their throats apart with my teeth. Aro seemed to notice the look of hunger in my eyes and beckoned towards them. "My gift," he echoed. I nodded and approached the crowd of humans, inspecting them. There were men, women and children of all ages standing before me. I allowed myself a smell and tried my absolute hardest to restrain myself. In the end, I took the hand of a rather yummy looking gentleman with dark eyes and stubble across his chin. He by far was the most delicious, in more ways than one.

"Thank you, master." I bowed and turned towards the doors, taking the human with me.

"Oh, Isabella..."

"Yes, Master?"

"I have a matter of business we must discuss-"

A lot growl reverberated from beyond Caius' bared teeth. Caius looked handsome but in a sly way. His fair hair hung by his ears, straight as a ruler, his smile was crooked to the extent it looked almost as if one side of his face had gone numb, and his eyes. His eyes held no emotion but rage. "Must we deal with this now?"

Aro titled his head towards Caius, the curtain of jet-black hair slowly brushed down the side of his shoulder. "Brother...you seem agitated this afternoon, what bothers you?"

"I am parched." Was his only reply and Aro rolled his eyes.

"I will call for you at sundown. We will discuss it then." I bowed to him, to his brothers and then spun towards the exist, practically dragging the human along with me. As I ascended the marble steps out of the room, I heard Aro's voice. "Now...let us feed."

That's when the humans started to scream and the sound of bloodshed was all I could hear.

* * *

Hours later, I felt deeply relaxed. I'd taken the human Aro had gifted me and lead him back down to the dungeons, to one of cells hidden away. The hypnotizing affect of Heidi's gift had worn off and he started to gather a sense of reason and logic, realizing that their tour had no only gotten lost but that they were in grave danger. He'd panicked, and then tried to run. Usually, we like to hunt. We were predators, hunting was what we did, but in that moment I could only wonder what business Aro had in store for me and I found very little pleasure in my kill.

Even as I pounced, straddled the human man and took him to the ground, even as my sharp teeth tore through his fragile flesh, burst through his jugular, and tasted the sweetness of his blood, all I could do was think of Aro. I had been right before, he had been delicious and thanks to the intoxicating scent of his blood, I had eventually calmed enough to enjoy my feed.

I'd disposed of the body through one of the many metal grates and listened as his body fell to the cavern hidden deep below the palace, miles into the darkness.

Since then I had returned to my chambers, bathed and changed and spent the remainder of my free time ensuring everyone else was doing their jobs. After I was sure, I had no issues to deal with nor important information I needed to disclose, I found myself in the library. Knowledge was something we vampires as a species urged for. I had yet to meet one of our kind who had not travelled the world in search of lost secrets and wonders. It sounded like a dream. I had read every book in the library and there was thousands and thousands of books, read the majority of them a few times over the years but I found these days my interest in reading was fading.

My unchanging home and everything within its walls was boring me more so with each passing day. I wondered how long I could go without luxuries of consistent amusement. Something I was in dire need of. A thought crossed my mind

 _Why not just leave?_

Just pack up my belongings and leave in the light of mid-day. It would take me a while to evade the assassins the Trio would certainly send after me but with my shield, I would've been protected. I could have seen the world. But what a life that would be, to be on the run from those you once called family, for all eternity? Not only that but I would have had to live with the knowledge that I abandoned Aro without warning or reason. After all he had done for me and for me to abandon, him, for me to even _think_ about abandoning him, was coming close to treason.

"Isabella?" A chipper, childlike voice called through the halls. I twitched — not a voice I wanted to hear when I was contemplating the possibility of leaving. If Aro ever discovered a way to read my thoughts our bond of friendship would most certainly break. but shatter under his fist.

"On my way, master." I replied to the summon. My voice echoed down the hall. We were on opposite sides of the castle, he was in his tower whereas I was wandering down a hall four levels below him. That was another reason I disliked my home, the privacy, or lack thereof. It was hard to find any quiet when you could hear everything around for miles. _Everything._

A heartbeat later, I stood by the giant mahogany doors, beyond which my masters were waiting for me. I tried to shake away the thoughts I'd been having, of leaving this place and possibly travelling this pathetic excuse of a world we live in. Aro would not be pleased if he discovered the truth. I slacked my shoulders, flung open the wooden doors and strolled in lazily.

You could tell they had fed. The purplish bruises surrounded their black eyes had vanished, their skin had an almost silver undertone glow in the dying embers of daylight and their eyes, their eyes had turned from coal black to glistening orbs of rubies. I hadn't had a chance to look in the mirror since feeding but I knew I looked good too, I felt good. My muscles, which had previously been tense, were now loose and relaxed, my vision was clearer and burn in my throat had subsided- for now.

"Isabella..." Aro sang,

"Masters, you called for me." I said with a bow. Bowing had just become second nature, something we did as we entered the Throne room and left it; a show of our respect.

"Yes. We have a task for you, Isabella..." Aro said. I cocked my head, waiting patiently - or so it would appear. "The time has come for you to leave us again, I'm afraid. We have many enemies across the world, many of those whom deem themselves worthy opponents to us and threaten to destroy the unwavering peace we have worked so hard to build. "

"And you would like for me to eradicate these threats."

"It is what you do best."

It was true, It was what I did best.

Aro had many enemies; old enemies from his long but not forgotten past and new enemies (usually Newborn's) who believed that had a choice when it came to the law. That since they had ascended into vampirism that they were free from rules and obligations. This was not the case and It was the Volturi's job to ensure they were reminded of our laws, reminded of them or punished for breaking them.

It was usually the latter.

He was correct before, I was the best at what finding our threats and dismissing of them. I wish I could say that I was the best simply because of my large variety of combat skills and knowledge of various martial arts, but - like most other perks I had in life - it was because of my gift, it shielded me from any unknown abilities these Newborn's may have possessed. My shield and my skills, as well as my proper and loyal decorum to our family, made me the perfect candidate for the job.

"Do you accept?" He asked as if I had a choice in the matter.

"Of course, it would be my pleasure."

Aro's smiled widened and surprisingly, he rose from his throne and slowly descended the dais, heading towards me. He held out his hand and I realized what it was. A sheet of yellowish parchment, folded into four to disclose the information written upon it. "Your targets and their current locations." He answered at my raised brows.

I did not have to ask, I knew that Aro had eyes and ears on all corners of the globe. "Thank you, Master."

He titled his head and looked at me with a look of what I could only call longing, "We will miss you, won't we brothers?"

Marcus did not look our way. Caius bared his teeth. I was overwhelmed with love.

"I shall return at the earliest convenience." I told him and then surprisingly Aro opened his arms and embraced me. I was taken by surprise as Aro never publically displayed his affections for me. He never came close to me when we were around others. I felt the warmth of his hard body, pressing against my own, felt his chin on the top of my head and his spider-like fingers running through my hair.

" _Promettimi, Isabella, si tornerà?"_ Translated to English this meant: _Promise me, Isabella, you will return?_

It took every ounce of self-control I had to hide my frown. It was as if Aro had been able to read my mind, like he truly was worried I would not return to the Volturi given the choice.

I smiled and pulled back and looked him in the face, my master. "I promise."

* * *

The moment the doors closed behind me and I was around the corner, I lifted the sheet of parchment and unfolded it, taking in the names and locations of my those Aro wished dead. There were seven names on the list and this took me by surprise, there was usually a great deal more. One vampire in Canada, one in London, two in New York, two in Seattle and the last in a town in Clallam County, Washington, by the name of Forks-

I stopped breathing and physically halted in the middle of the hall, as if paralysed by the name. Forks. I did not understand it, nor did I truly want to but something within me lurched at the name of this town. I was almost one hundred percent certain I had never heard of this town before, never visited it during my travels; then how did I know of it and why did it have such an unusual affect over me?

I glanced down at the list a third time, reflecting the words pensively.

Forks. It was so familiar yet so distant.

I realized after a second that I was being immature, that I may have overheard Aro discussing it with his brothers at some point, it seemed like the logically explanation if he had an enemy in the area. I scolded myself for such nonsense thinking and continued my walk to my chambers with a smile on my face.

Perhaps this was my chance to finally get out of Volterra and have some fun.

* * *

 **FanWriter's Note:**

 **Hello everyone. Welcome to 'Remember a love long lost' my newest story here on Fanfiction. A little insight to this story: Isabella the Overseer of the Volturi Guard and Aro's most loyal friend in the world. She has been a vampire for many centuries now and has enjoyed it but as time passes, Isabella wants nothing more than to get out and see the world but fears the consequences of doing so. Though now given freedom to leave her home and hunt down Aro's enemies, Isabella expects to have an amusing time until her travels take her to Forks, where she discovers more about the world and who she really is.**

 **I hope you enjoy this story and the direction I intend on taking it. I hope to read many reviews on your opinions and thoughts, as they do mean a lot to me and do help. Thank you, and enjoy.**

 **~FanWriter Asher~**


	2. Chapter 2

**Isabella's POV:**

* * *

There was someone in my chamber.

As I approached the curving stone stairwell that ascended into one of the tallest towers of the building adjacent to the clock tower, I stopped dead in my tracks. A slit in the wall allowed for the soft dying light of day to shine through, flooding everything in a dusty ember glow; it also allowed for me to see clearly the hundreds of dust motes that danced across my vision, spinning aimlessly like planets without orbit.

I frowned. Who would dare enter my private chamber without my warranty? Whoever it was, they were about to become victim to one infuriated immortal. I reached the top of the stairwell in less than a second and kicked the set of wooden doors in with enough force to almost tear them from their hinges. With a growl, I stormed inside.

My chambers were wide and spacious, more than enough room for a dozen people though of course I lived alone, usually. The walls were two stories and made of stone the colour of ash; the main room was wide and circular, made up of a grand marble fireplace framed on either side by tall vases of sweet smelling roses. Set out before the hearth there was two long and rather expensive sofas, made up of white fabrics and beneath that a wide, luxurious rug. In spite of what I was, I liked to keep my room tidy, presentable and light. The colour pallet of the furniture was that of whites, beiges and chocolates and made up of only the finest materials and designs. Furniture carved centuries ago. I was nothing if not traditional.

The main room branched off into an en suite bathroom and a walk in closet the same size as the en suite. The two rooms were hidden away behind closed doors yet the third room, the bedroom, was accessible through a tall archway and behind the veil of a curtain. A curtain I had left open when I left my chambers earlier that day, yet now was drawn.

"You have to the count of now to reveal yourself."

It was only when I heard the ruffle of my duvet and his bare footsteps on the cold floor that I caught his scent. The moment it hit me, I felt my shoulders loosen and my muscles relax. I unclenched my jaw. He appeared in the archway to the bedroom, smirking at me with two rows of pearly whites.

"It's about time you showed up. Come, join me." He winked and beckoned me towards my bedroom with one finger. I scowled and followed him across the room.

"Kai." I scolded, following cautiously. On the way, I kicked off my heels and wiggled my toes against concrete.

"Isabella..." He hummed in response from the other room. I parted the curtain and stepped into my bedroom. He was already on my iron four-poster bed, fiddling thoughtlessly with the black voile curtains hanging down either side. He rested his head against my pearly white duvets, blankets, in a depression of my many lush pillows; there were more than any one individual needed. Ironic, to say we did not sleep.

The man sprawled out across my mattress was a good-looking man, even by my standards. He was taller than I was, by three of four foot and had a built, toned physique he liked to show off to the other members of the Guard, all except Felix who had even Kai outmatched. It was not his muscles that drew women (and some men, I discovered) to his bed at night but his unnaturally good looks, even for one of our kind. His features were angular and sharp, with a straight nose, strong bone structure and high cheekbones so sharp they were dangerous to the touch.

"You know," I begun, crossing my arms and resting my shoulder against the threshold wall, "Breaking into the Overseer of the Guard's private chambers is a serious crime. I have documentation in her that Aro does not wish to be seen by prying eyes. Top secrets you see-"

"-Oh is that so?" His tone was mocking.

"Indeed, and if he were to hear of your crime he would surly inflict a severe punishment. Or maybe he would allow me to inflict it myself?"

"Punishment? Interesting. In what form?"

I paused and rubbed my chin, "I was thinking something along the lines of a trip to the dungeons. Maybe we can play with some toys: chains, whips, torches and other fun instruments. Maybe even a hot poker..." I let the last word linger in the air.

"You would let me off so easily?" He winked and smiled as he bit his lower lip. A lip I so desperately wanted to bite. "Come, join Me." he repeated as he unbuttoned his shirt slowly, one torturous button a time.

"Maybe your punishment ought to be a night in your own bed, alone?"

"You monster!" He threw his head back and laughed, within a blurry second he appeared by my side and his rough, calloused hands wrapped around my throat. With a single heave, he hoisted me into the air and slammed me ruthlessly against the wall. I felt my head connect with the concrete, felt the vibrations running through the rock as it cracked open behind me.

I did not fight back, I did not even frown; instead I allowed myself a smile. He noticed my smile but before he could say anything, I slammed my elbow into his nose and as his head snapped back, I grabbed him by the throat and launched him through the curtain and rolling across the sitting room floor. He barely had a chance to sit up before I slammed my bare foot against his chest and kept him pinned down.

"Thank you." Being called a monster was no insult, especially not with our lifestyles.

He grunted and slammed his arm into the back of my knee, causing it to bend, this lapse gave him the opportunity to spin me around, and before I knew it, he was straddling me, pinning my arms to the ground. Then he kissed me. His lips smashed against my own with enough force to break the jaw of a human, yet I barely felt it. Instead, I let my head fall back and my hair splay out, my eyes closed and a moan escaped through my lips.

He used one hand to pin both of my own while the other caressed my cheek, he dragged a finger towards my shirt and tugged on the buttons of my black blouse while his lips shifted from my own to my jaw-line and then to the hollow of my throat. Soft at first but as he pressed his frame against me, his weight resting on me, he got rougher. Desperate. He tasted of berries and blood, of death and sex and it overwhelmed me.

"I came-" He said, "-The moment word travelled of your mission. I did not want you to leave without a proper goodbye..." He tugged on the last button and pulled my shirt apart, revealing my smooth stomach and dark lace bra I chose that morning. He reached down, grabbed the flesh of my thigh, and hitched it around his waist. I could feel him pressing into me. I ran my fingers through his mid-length hair; it was in a state of disarray and was as black as his soul was. I raked my hands down his back. "Shall we move to the bedroom? Or the bathtub, your call." He winked.

I knew I only had a few hours left until dawn. For mortals, sex lasted only a sheer matter of minutes (not even that for some, I had discovered) but for our kind who never grew tired, who never needed to take a break for silly things such as food or sleep, we could go for days! However, I did not have days; I had hours and had much to do in my few hours before I took my leave. The first thing: let the hunter free.

I lifted him off me and rolled from beneath him, springing to my feet.

"I'm afraid not. I am going out. I need to let loose and the only possible way I can think to do that now is to hunt down a human whose life is even more so depressing than my own." It was not the only reason, I had fed earlier that day thanks to Aro's Gift yet one simple human was no enough nutrition for a mission across the world. I could already feel my muscles hardening and the burn in my throat. I needed to power up. I noticed his leather jacket thrown carelessly atop my tabletop. I snatched it up and put it on.

"Isabella, I too find enjoyment in the luxuries of mindless slaughter, more so than you or any other could possible comprehend, however this once - and this once only - might I suggest you find an alternative?" His hand caressed his bare chest, running his nails through tuffs of chest hair.

He was correct in that sense. There was being an immortal, blood-drinking monster and then there was him. His soul as cold as his still dead heart. The fact that Kai marvelled in the hunt more so than I did ought to have worried me, terrified me even, yet I could never turn him away.

"I cannot. I have to hunt, then shower and change, then pack and then consult with Aro's eyes to get whatever information I can get on my targets. I have to arrange flights and trains and..." He shot across the room in what would appear to any human as a blur of black and white, but not to me. I saw all of him. The movement of his solid muscles beneath the layers of his immaculate ivory coloured skin. He grabbed his jacket by the collar and pulled me in for another tormenting kiss.

"You can convince yourself you do not want this though I believe both you and I know the truth." He beckoned to his magnificent naked form. He dropped the remains of his shirt to the ground. Cocky, not confident.

"Kai..." I warned. He took his jacket off me and dropped it, then he took my shirt off and it joined his jacket.

He pressed his lips against the corner of my mouth, then to my jaw and then against my throat. The same place Aro had bitten me so long ago.

"C'mon." He sang. There was just something in that dark ruby, puppy-dog eyes that drew me in and maybe this was why I loosened my shoulders, unzipped my jeans and threw myself into his arms.

* * *

I have lived many lifetimes and had more than my fair share of sexual partners. Unbelievably it was not as easy for us to find that kind of fun as one may have been lead to believe, despite our unearthly beauty and our eternal life spans. It was difficult, you see, to find a being with whom you could lose yourself completely; to let go of your worry and your concerns of damaging them and to really have some fun. Of course, we could walk just outside of our homes and ask anyone, but when you shared a bed with humans, things were not as fun. I had tried it a few times and each time had resulted in very little pleasure for either one of us, well, that was until I decided to let go and I had pinned them to the bed, splintering the bones in their arms, and then tore their vocal chords out with my teeth. One way or another, I would leave that room satisfied.

We vampires preferred the company of our own kind to that of a human. Very few vampires had that secure sense of control to make love to a human without killing it. It was just easier when it was with a member of our own kind. It was powerful, passionate, and rough; the way I liked it.

Mordecai was exactly what I needed, what I craved. I had wondered if I would ever find someone to fulfil my many disgusting desires, if I would have to succumb to the not-so-subtle hints Demetri and the other Guards had given me and fuck one of them, but then he had shown up. I had been called in to the throne room by Aro and asked to show our most recent addition around our lovely home and to his chambers. He had been standing in the centre of the room with his hands in his pockets and a bored expression on his face. At the time, I had been surprised by Aro's leniency with Kai; though it had not taken me long to discover the truth behind it.

Kai was gifted, of course. Gifted with the ability of compulsion. Compulsion was an extremely rare ability for our kind. In fact, Kai was the first of our kind I had heard of with such ability. He could not only hypnotise and control the minds of humans, but also of vampires. He could sway your will in any direction he pleased; convince you of anything he desired. Aro had been ecstatic to learn of Kai's existence and ability; I had overheard him speaking with Caius one night about how Kai's ability could grow with time. In the future, he may have been able to not only force his will onto others but also lead them to believe whatever he willed. To take full control over an entire mind.

I had been worried at first until I realized no matter how hard he tried; Kai's ability would not sway me. He had tried, once, but only upon Aro's request to see if his gift would work on me. Of course, it had not and this had intrigued Kai. He had spent years - for the use of a better word - courting me. I had not been interested at first, but I had flirted back out of mindless amusement, that was until he diverted his attention from me and towards Heidi who was more than happy to open her legs for him.

This had somewhat annoyed me.

So naturally, I took him back and had more fun with my new toy that Heidi ever could. Since then, he and I had a kind of thing. He was not my mate, I could not stress that point to him enough; at first he seemed a little dubious until he accepted I was not a one-person kind of girl. I liked to have fun and experiment: vampires, humans, men and women. We were just two people who liked to fuck. If only I had his power to blame for my arousal.

I scolded myself for giving in to Kai's influence and rolled out of bed. "Where is it you think you're going?" He asked. I walked across my cool chamber naked and headed towards the en suite.

"Showering, since I no longer have the time to hunt."

"Want some company?" he asked, following me into the main room.

"No."

I closed the bathroom door. The shower was hot, the water burning my skin felt nice. I rubbed my arms and my neck, wiping away the shampoo suds from my body. It had taken all the willpower I held to pull myself away from Kai; if I had a choice he and I would have kept going for another several hours but I knew I would miss my flight and Aro would not be pleased with me.

After my shower I stood, staring at myself in the mirror. I looked better than I had that morning yet still I felt drained. My skin usually held an ivory glow, flawless and smooth yet now it looked almost greyish. My face, though still beautiful, looked worn due to the growing purple bruises beneath my mesmerizing eyes. I had fed that day thanks to Aro but already they were darkening. For me, feeding on only one human was like a human only taking one bite of an apple. Tastes good at the time but is far from being enough nutrition. I grabbed a hairbrush and ran it through my dark, heavy hair until it was flat and clinging to my shoulders then returned to the main room where Kai was sprawled out, still naked, on the rug by the hearth.

I pulled up and headed towards my walk in closet. Five minutes later, I came out, clad all in black. Black skinny jeans, black, heeled platform pumps as well as a stretched T-shirt that acted as a dress on my slender frame. I had a tight, structured jacket on top of that with an over-sized hood to protect my face from the sun.

"Why must we wear black all of the time? It's such a depressing colour." He stated as I set down my now full suitcase atop the table.

"Black is my happy colour." I joked. I slid on a pair of soft black gloves. All skin had to be covered.

"Isabella?" There was something in his voice. A tone I had not heard from him before: fear. I turned to face him. The flames cast swaying shadows over his back and torso, making his eyes almost black and his features even sharper. "I could come with you, I have no duties here as of yet." I rolled my eyes as I sauntered over and sat down by his side. He rolled over and rested his head in my lap. I caressed his cupids-bow with my fingernail, smirking down.

"No," I finally answered his question. "You may not have any duties as of yet but with Aro you can never be sure. You must stay." The pain I had inflicted with this answer was as clear as day. I looked down at the silver watch on my wrist. It was almost dawn. I had to leave.

"I must go." I informed him. I grabbed my suitcase and headed towards the doors. He was still stark naked, even as he followed me out.

Just as I reached the top of the stairs, he snatched my wrist and spun to kiss me a final time. I allowed myself a single moment, to let the kiss consume me. Nevertheless, a moment was all I had to spare. I pulled away from him, "Don't you dare enter my private chambers without my permission again, do you understand?" He just laughed.

"Of course. I'll miss you." I did not reply as I descended the stairwell, leaving him behind. Although as I made my way through the tunnels of our home and towards the underground parking lot where all of the Volturi's rather expensive and beautiful means of transportation were kept, I continued to think of Kai. The planes of his chest and the curve of his muscles, the texture of his hair and the gleam in his dark eyes. He was a beautiful man and as much as I refused to admit it aloud, I was beginning to care for him.

Though my personal feelings had to wait, I had a mission. I had to put aside my love life and focus solely on the kill. First stop: Pisa.

* * *

 **FanWriter's Note:**

 **Hello everyone! Big thank you from everyone who read and left a review on the first chapter of this story! Seen as though some of you may be Guests on this site and I cannot private message Guests to reply to your reviews and answer your questions, I've decided to respond to your reviews at the end of the next chapters. Responses to reviews from chapter one will be at the end of this note. Responses to reviews on this chapter will be at the end of chapter three, and so on. Not much happens in this chapter but we do learn about Bella's current love life and thoughts on having a mate. We do meet Kai in this chapter who will play a large part in this story later. Please review and let me know what you thought!**

* * *

 **Responding to your reviews:**

 _ **Kissofshadows13: Thank you! The next chapter is here and I can't wait to see what you think**_

 _ **XXX1994: Thank you for your review! Isabella has been out on hunts before, hunting to feed and hunting down Aro's enemies. This is true. Though for a reason unknown to even Isabella, she has a constant urge to leave her home. There is a reason for this and it will be explained in chapters to come. An Overseer is a kind of supervisor. Another word for Captain of the Volturi Guard. She ensures the other members of the Volturi Guard are doing their jobs correctly. She is Aro's right hand.**_

 _ **Guests 1 & 2: Both of your names are Guest so I respond to the two of you here. Both of you asked when the next chapter will be updated and here it is. As of this moment, I have no set routine for updates of this story as chapter planning is still in progress though I am trying for a chapter a week. This is not set in stone! **_

_**Alice: Alice! I love you. I always enjoy your reviews. So warming and encouraging. Around 4 years and you're still reading! Wow. I cannot thank you enough for it! And your kind words on this story. I am glad to hear how my writing has improved over time; it just inspires me to keep going. Thank you! Xx**_

 _ **Maddy2U2000: Again, the chapter is here! Hope you enjoy.**_

 **~FanWriter Asher~**


	3. Chapter 3

**Isabella's POV:**

* * *

I had one of our human subjugates pull around a car. It was a beautiful car; a Mercedes E— Class Saloon. I did not know much about cars, other than how to drive them. I had only discovered the name of this car when the subjugate (whose name I had already forgotten) informed me of it for reasons unknown. I handed him my suitcase, which he placed in the trunk, and then I sat in the back with one leg folded over the other and waited. He slid in and started the car and within seconds, we were on the road and heading away from Volterra. I glanced back out of the rear-view window once, watching the sky lighten into a baby blue the higher the sun rose.

I could not help but find myself smiling. Finally, I was leaving home behind. A part of me felt saddened at the thought of leaving home — sad. That is the wrong word — ambivalent. I supposed in a way I did not want to leave the security of the palace, to leave my 'friends.' A part of me yearned to spend a day in bed with Kai yet another part of me, a larger part of me, craved to leave home and explore.

I turned to face the road ahead. Waiting.

The subjugate would drive me the hour it took from Volterra to Pisa, there I would meet with one of Aro's consultants. A man by the name of Sebastian. I had met him on numerous occasions before under similar circumstances. He was in charge of Aro's other consultants across the globe, he ensured they were doing their jobs just as I ensured the Guard back home did theirs. Aro had a team, a team of other gifted vampires who would use their gifts to find out as much as they could on his enemies. For example, they were sent to interact with Aro's enemies under false pretences. One of these vampires would be a tracker; another would be able to identify other abilities if they possessed such. Another would be able to sense the greatest fears of others in case of conflict, or another could predict any lies being told to them if suspected, to name but a few of the Gifted on this team.

The information they gathered was sent to Sebastian, who would pass it on to me upon our meeting. He would join me on a flight to London, during which we would discuss the list of Aro' selected enemies and he would tell me what I needed to know. Upon landing, we would depart and I would hunt down and end the first of Aro's enemies.

* * *

After the hour was up, the driver pulled into an empty but well lit airport runway, well, empty with the exception of one jet and a small handful of vampires standing before it.

Sebastian was waiting by the steps to the private jet. It was a pearly white Gulfstream V. One of the Volturi's many private jets. He looked just as he did the last time I saw him, three decades ago. He was tall, around six feet, but unhealthily thin and lanky. Like his skin clung only to the bone. His face was long and sharp, his cheekbones high and his eye— brows arched. His thin lips mangled into some form of a smile. Yet still quite handsome.

"Isabella...it's been some time. You're looking well." I nodded and handed the subjugate by his side my case and walked up the steps of the jet, ducking indoors.

"Three decades, Sebastian," I answered. Thirty years since I had spoken to him, twenty— nine years since I had thought of him, yet I ignored his welcome. We vampires were not the affectionate type. "The sun is up. Shall we go?"

He followed me indoors, as did his own protection: four other vampires of shapes and sizes all clad in black and grey. It did not take long for the jet to set off down the runaway and before we spoke again, we were in the sky. Thankfully, the windows of the jet were blacked out yet still allowed enough daylight in for me to enjoy the view. Flying was something I thoroughly enjoyed; I had been cautious off aerodynamic transportation in the first century of its creation. The humans were no so technologically advanced back then as they were today and the idea of falling out of an aircraft hundreds of miles into the sky and plummeting to the earth below did not sound so appeasing. For all I knew, a fall such as that could damage one of us beyond repair.

These days I did not worry as much. Humans perfected flight and I could enjoy watching the earth pass us by.

"Tell me, how is Aro?" Sebastian enquired, sitting across from me, leaning back in into the warm white leather. A flight attendant, clearly human, stopped by our side and held a tray forward. A tray with two champagne glasses of thick, black blood. I felt my throat burn and my muscles react. The hunter wanted to not only consume the contents of both glasses but to take the flight attendant as well. I shook my head and turned away. Sebastian thanked the human girl and sipped his blood sweetly. It still surprised me, how some vampires had such a strong sense of control when it came to blood. I could restrain from human blood at times of desperate hunger such as this, if I knew it was what I needed to do, whereas others would not be able to cage the beast within. They would willingly attack and consume without paying a single thought to the consequences of their actions. Other vampires, such as Sebastian, were so strong he could be exposed to fresh blood, drink it and not turn into a thing of nightmares.

I wondered if time would secure me such a sense of control, yet I was old. I was only about a thousand years (give or take) younger than Aro, over a thousand years myself! Yet I still fell into two minds when it came to blood. Strange. A part of me then wondered if it were Sebastian's talent, to have such control.

His voice distracted me. "Isabella?" He asked. I realized he had asked me a question.

"Aro is well, of course." That was all I had to say on the matter. I did not want to think of Aro, not now. It would sadden me and distract me from the task at hand. "Tell me, who is my first target?"

Sebastian sighed, obviously displeased with my lack of enthusiasm to play the part of old friends. He lifted a black briefcase onto the built in table between us and clicked it open. He reached inside and as he did so, I got a brief look at the documentation within. Names, dates, places, times, photographs, etc. In a way, the Volturi's connections around the world reminded me a little of the mortal government. With its hidden societies and branches of government and top secret departments. The only difference being where the humans tried to restrain and punish its rule breakers in places such as prisons and institutions, we vampires simply eradicated the threat from the start.

He pulled out a black and white photograph and slid it across to me. I snatched it up and took in the face of my first kill. He looked to be I his twenties; he had a sagging face and unshaven stubble. He looked angry.

"His name is George." I did not need to know his name. "He resides in London, Croydon specifically. He lives in an old apartment building vacated last year and scheduled for demolition this coming June. He lives with— "

"Age?" I blurted.

Sebastian sighed, "Twenty-four when he was turned, this was eight years ago."

"Hmm, so young." I sighed. Age was an important factor when it came to finding out information on your enemy. Older vampires such as I was powerful, incredibly powerful. Vampires younger than I yet had passed the first century of their birth tended to share a similar measure of strength – Unless they were gifted with an ability to further it or their body mass was increased more so than that of an average human before their turning. Newborns were strong. Human blood still lingers in their tissues meaning that for a short period, they are at their strongest. Of course, with time, the venom would consume the lingering blood and these capabilities would diminish.

George was eight of our years, meaning he had surpassed the first year of almost threatening strength yet still he was young, thus making him naive, reckless and easy to kill.

"Like I was saying, he lives with two others. A male and female he turned a few years back—"

"He turned them?" This honestly surprised me. An eight-year-old vampire turning a human?

"The first by accident. He was mid-feed when he was caught by the human police. At this time, he still feared them so he managed to leave the girl and flee, not knowing he had not entirely killed her. The venom turned her and she slaughtered and entire emergency room floor. She escaped; the two found one another and mated. The other was an old friend of his he told the truth too. This friend extracted venom in attempts at experimenting with it. Hoping to find a cure."

I laughed aloud, even Sebastian's guards joined in.

"Obviously, his experiments failed and he turned. He too joined George and his mate. The three have been together since."

"So," I asked finally, "Why does Aro require their demise?"

Sebastian smiled, "It's rather amusing, actually. They have been plotting to create and army of their own. An army they plan to use to storm Buckingham palace and kill the Queen of Britain. As fun as that would be to watch play out, we know how horrific this would be and the consequences his actions would have on our kind and the world as a whole."

"I agree, it would be something," I could picture it now. How horrible.

"He should not be difficult to dispose of. My men will be on the scene when you give the word to dispose of the remains. After this we'll be travelling to..."

For the three hours it took to journey from Pisa, Italy to London, England, Sebastian took me through every single bit of information he had on my targets. Their names, ages, current locations, any gifted ones, of which there was only one. The one I had been eager to learn about. The vampire in Forks. Apparently, she was exceptionally gifted as evading enemies. She was the one I would have to work hard to kill. Her name? Victoria.

* * *

It was a three-hour journey from Pisa to London though time difference was only one hour, meaning it was approximately noon when we arrived. One thing I loved about the UK. The rain. It was rarely sunny in this little country. Thankfully, it was grey enough for me to walk about without the need of cover. The moment I left Sebastian and his guards at the airport, I decided to hunt. I left my suitcase with them, knowing I would not require a hotel as we were staying in London only that day.

It did not take me long to locate some desperate human man looking for some loving companionship in the alleyway behind an old 'Pub' He barely had a chance to ask me how much I cost before I snapped his neck and sunk my teeth into his fleshy throat. Usually I would savour the kill, I would take joy in watching the light leave their eyes as I drained them of every last drop they held, but it was daylight and it was London, a city populated by over eight million. Better safe than sorry.

I made sure to make the wound look as if he had been bottled in some fight with my next victim, a man of a very similar nature. The police would see it as a drunken brawl that went terribly out of hand. One of them bottle in the throat and died, but not before shoving the other into a wall and cracking his skull. A real tragedy. Taken too soon and all that other nonsense.

Although I was covered in blood. A shower was in order. I covered myself with my cloak, wiped the blood from my chin, returned to collect my suitcase and bought a hotel room after all. After showering, changing, going over my kill list another time and then spending a few hours shopping on the streets of central London, I realized it was sunset. Time to kill. I gave Sebastian a call to inform him I was on my way and set off to kill a man who was plotting to assassinate the Queen.

* * *

I broke through the door to the apartment building, made my way up the curving stairs with my cloak trailing behind me until I stopped just outside the door to number 31. I could hear voices from inside. I walked through the door to the apartment. It was wide and spacious and once upon a time would have looked nice, only now the remnants of the furniture were torn and stained with dried up blood, blood that was splattered across the white walls and pooling in the torn up carpet. In the corner of the room lay a decaying human corpse. I had smelt it walking down the hall. Disgusting. Killing was one thing, keeping the slowly rotting body of your prey in the corner like some proud trophy was another.

I heard their footsteps before they rushed into the room, three of them. "Who the hell are you?" The man in the centre of the trio asked me. I glanced up and looked him in the eye. George. He looked just as he did in the photograph. Rugged, with a tangle of greasy hair and an untrimmed beard. His clothes were torn and bloodstained also. He looked as if he had not bathed since he had turned. The girl by his side looked to be sixteen, if not younger but in the way she clung to his arm, it was obvious she was his mate. A skimpy little thing, wearing old leather skirts and torn tights. Her red lipstick smudged with blood. On George's other side, his brother, the scientist. A taller man, bigger in build too yet he looked frightened. Correctly so. Their eyes were all still blazing. Newborns.

"I said who are ya?"

"I heard you the first time. My name is Isabella." I dropped my hood so they could see me clearly. From the looks on their faces, they had not expected me. They had met others of our kind before, when Aro's consultants had informed them of the Volturi and the rules they were breaking. Still, they continued to ignore our law and plot to kill her majesty the Queen. This could not be allowed. "I was sent by the Volturi. I'm afraid I have heard bad things about you, George."

I started to move across the room, looking as if I were admiring the apartment. "I like what you've done with the place." I nodded to the corpse. "Friend of yours?" I mumbled. I turned back to them. "Yes, very bad things indeed. Rumour has it you are planning to kill Queen Elizabeth?"

"Nah. Not true."

"It isn't?" This confused me.

"We're gonna turn her. Make her one of us."

Ah, there it was. "By, George!" I smile, reciting the phrase in a perfect British accent. "It will not stand. In doing so, you are killing her and exposing our kind to the world. I'm afraid it's against the rules. Against the law."

"Nah. We don't follow no laws, not anymore, do we?" He asked his friends. They laughed, nodding along with him.

"That's a shame." I purred, "I like you, George, your accent and your pride." I scoffed, "Like a child, refusing to go to bed when told. It is amusing." I take off my gloves and unbutton my cloak. It dropped to the ground, their eyes following it. "I wish I did not have to kill you."

For a moment, he looked startled and glanced down at his companions. Then he laughed. I stopped smiling, "You? Alright, love, give it a go."

"I'm warning you, there will be a lot of screaming and a lot of pain."

"Have a go if you think your 'ard enough! Three against one."

"And yet...the odds are not in your favour..."

They crossed the space of the room in a blink. I took the head of the girl in less than.

I ducked under the brothers' arm, snapping it from his torso with a screech as I went. I dropped down low, narrowly missing the swipe of George's claws. His brother yelled, lashing out with his leg. I darted left and rebounded, bringing his own arm around and into his face like a baseball bat. He flew backwards, crashing through the wall and sending plaster and stone everywhere. George grabbed me by the throat and hoisted me off the ground, blood stained his teeth and fury filled his eyes.

I lifted my legs up, wrapped them around his arm, and twisted, the crack echoed through the apartment and down the hall, followed by his screams. I dropped to the ground but only to gain my balance; before the crack had time to heal, I slammed my elbow into his mouth, breaking his jaw and then my fist into his eyes, temporarily blinding him.

"This didn't have to happen, George. If you had just followed the rules and—"

His brother lunged at me through the hole in the wall, slamming me against the one opposite from it. His thumb pressed into my neck, digging in uncomfortably. "H— How, rude!" I choked. I brought my arm up and tore off his other arm, then slammed my forehead into his own. He fell backwards into George. "I was speaking!" His brother looked up in time to see my boot only briefly before it took off his head.

"Barney!" George bellowed.

"Barney? Can tell which one of the two of you was the mistake."

With that, I dug my fingers into the side of George's head and pulled. A metallic screech filled the air. I did warn him.

"Now..." I said as turned to the door, "Whose next?"

* * *

That night we had a flight from Camden, to JFK Airport, Queens. There was around a six or seven hour time difference, and with the delays due to bad weather, we luckily arrived after sundown. This meant no underground car parks and blacked out apartment buildings. It meant freedom. Of course, when in the Big Apple, I shopped for a while before gearing up and tracking down the first of my two targets of New York. The first was in Manhattan, a religious man who had completely lost his faith (and his mind) upon being turned by his immortal mate. He had gone completely insane, begun to kill conspicuously and tried on many occasions to reveal his true nature to the humans during the light of day, trying to convince them that he was our Lord and Saviour reborn. I found him that night in a convent, surrounded by the bodies of blood— stained nuns he had slaughtered. He lay in a pool of their blood, praying to God. I told him my name, why I was there and why he had to die. He had not taken it so well. Therefore, with a swipe of my nails I took his head clean off, knocking over a candle stand as I did so and lighting the entire place on fire.

Kai would not believe it when I planned to tell him I had killed Jesus.

The next was a young woman who had supposedly returned to her human life after forty of our years to turn her children, grand— children and great— grand children. She was discovered by Sebastian's consultants who immediately took out the immortal children she had created before word spread of blood— drinking toddlers. The woman, out of grief, had gone on a rampage and had managed to lose Sebastian's men. It did not take me long to locate her, hiding out in the remains of her old family home. She had begged with me and pleased, stating she only intended on keeping those she loved alive by her side forever. I told her there were rules, rules she knowingly decided to break. Therefore, I broke through her skull.

I was grateful Sebastian's men had destroyed the immortal child before I arrived. I had no problem when it came to killing them, I had done it a few times since my turning, yet it was not something you ever got used to. It was different. When you killed another adult, you knew that they deserved it. You knew they made choices and decisions in both their human and immortal lives that lead to their death sentence. It was different with immortal children. They were just that, children. They had no morals; no understand of right and wrong. Their innocence had been ripped from them and forced into an eternal torture. Well – eternal until we arrived. I could tear heads from shoulders all day while thinking only of what book to read later that day yet when it came to ending the life of a child...

You get the point.

My next kill was in Toronto, Canada. From Brooklyn, the flight lasted only two hours so we arrived at almost four in the morning. It would not be long for the sun to rise and thankfully, it did not take me to long to find my target. A young woman whom had fallen in love with a human woman yet refused to change her. When confronted by the Volturi and told the human must be turned or destroyed, the immortal woman had killed the consultant. Killing a member of the Volturi was an act of treason and was therefore punishable by death. By me. When I found her, she was in a cemetery, sobbing over a headstone. From the looks of the fresh soil beneath her crumpled up form, the grave was fresh. It was not hard to realize what had happened. The girl sat up but did not turn to face me as I left the tree— line and drifted down towards her. Instead, she stopped her tear— less cries and held her head high.

"Do it." She whispered. I did not waste time on small talk with this one. I twisted her head until her scream was outmatched by the sound of screeching metal. I left her body in the woods by the cemetery, knowing Sebastian's men would burn her remains shortly. We were back in the sky and heading to Seattle— Tacoma International Airport within the hour. Seattle was dreary, a storm had rolled in thankfully, leaving the sun hidden away behind black clouds and lightening flash in the distance, followed by the rumble of thunder. I was thankful the flight had been quick.

Sebastian followed me across the tarmac, briefcase in hand like usual. One of his subjugates walked by my side, my case in hand. "You have two Newborns to kill here." He blurted out.

"You've no need to remind me." I frowned; he knew I remembered perfectly well. Why remind someone with perfect memory?

"I know. Rumour has it these two Newborns were a part of a coven, a larger coven. I've people looking into this but as if this moment, we are unclear." I shrugged as if it was nothing though this was news to me. If it turned out I was not going against two Newborns but an entire coven of them, I could not afford to be lenient. I found the two newborns; their names were Shelly and Steve. By the looks of their almost glowing eyes, they were fairly new; turned in the last year, definitely. They were frightened and timid, who wouldn't be if you saw an immensely beautiful woman emerge from the trees, wearing nothing but a large over— sized cloak. Whose eyes glowed like brimstone and with a smile that could stop your heart. They'd tried to run, tried and failed and I'd killed them both. One of them, I hadn't seen which, had got a good grip on my arm and yanked until a crack appeared at my wrist. That had pissed me off. I smashed their heads together like a tired parent dealing with two annoying siblings, and then did it repeatedly and again until the remains of their heads were nothing but shards of broken marble in the rain.

That was it. Six out of seven gone, and a few added extras that got in the way. Better yet, all in less than a week. It was a shame, really, to be so close to the end of my trip. I had been enjoying myself, these past few days and although I missed home, missed Kai and hell, even missed Aro! A part of me wanted to stay. What had Sebastian said about my last kill, Victoria? That she was exceptional at evading death. Hmm. Maybe I wouldn't be on a jet home as soon as I thought.

As I returned to the hotel Sebastian and his men were staying in, I listened to the thunder drum on and on. This weather was perfect for us. Light enough to be classes as day but dark enough the humans could not tell us apart. The rain had made my clothes heavy and my hair curl on the edges, something I did not like. So I returned to my fourth hotel room of the week, showered lay in the soft covers of the bed until it was time. It was almost sunset, not that it would make much of a difference. The dark grey of the sky would simply get darker until nightfall.

When I glanced down at my cell and the numbers said **18:00 PM**. I decided it best to set off for the first kill of the week I was truly anticipating to be an interesting fight. I slid on my tight jeans, laced up my heeled combat boots, pulled on a black tank top with a sheer neck— line, over the top I had sleek, leather, tight fit jacket and just for that added bit of spice. A pair of aviator frame sunglasses.

I heard footsteps outside my door. "Come in, Sebastian." I said as I ran my fingers through my now dry hair. It hung long, straight and flowing down my back. The colour of dark chocolate and as soft as a cloud would be. He walked in and closed the door silently behind him. He had changed too, wearing a shirt as white as his hair, ironed trousers and polished shoes. He was a handsome man; I'd never confess it but a while before I had met Kai, Sebastian and I would spend many nights together while on my adventures. Hours we would spend, entangled in one another's arms, until one day we just stopped. I think it was because he discovered he was gay. I had known it a long time before he had. These days he was mated to a vampire called Daris. A shame, he was good in bed.

"You are about to leave?" He stated the obvious, I rolled my eyes.

"Obviously."

"To Forks?" He asked.

"No Sebastian, I thought I'd look in the ice box down the hall first then try the broom closet. Yes, to Forks." What was with the questions?

"Be careful. If you don't catch a scent on the way, come back and try another day. Some of my sources tell me she may be dotting from Forks to Port Angeles to Oregon to right here in Seattle." Again, information they had withheld from me. I would have to have a word with Aro upon my return to Volterra. If he expects me to eliminate his threats, I need to know everything about them. Telling me this Victoria is in Forks when she may be in three other cities and towns is somewhat vital information.

"She'll be there. Let me just finish this and we can be on a flight back to Italy before the night is through." I left him in my room, knowing he would send for his people to pack away my things and prepare them for our journey home. As I stood in the brightly lit elevator, waiting to reach the lobby, I thought about Sebastian and what he said. "Be careful." He had never, not once, told me to be careful. Not even during my first mission away from home? Unusual.

I did not realize he was capable of such emotion.

I tried not to let it get to me, instead I headed towards the trees and set off running, leaving Seattle behind. It would take an hour or so to get to Forks on foot from here, plenty of time to accumulate a plan to take out a girl who couldn't be killed.

* * *

The closer I neared to Forks, the more I thought of my final kill. Victoria. The photograph Sebastian had shown me on the jet from Pisa to London was still fresh in my mind. In it, she had been standing by the side of a road, with her head tilted back and the heavy downpour of rain-washing over her. She looked almost solemn. Her hair hung in wet curls and tangles half way down her spine, her dark clothing was heavy and clung to her slender frame, her sharp shoulder blades, like a child wearing their parent's clothes. Her eyes were open still, wide and spacious, decorated in dark make up much like my own. Her lips had been twisted into an unnerving smirk.

Unlike the others I'd taken out, Sebastian had not filled me in on the reason behind her sentence? I had waited an explanation that never came, and when I asked all he said was "Victoria killed someone very close to Aro and word had spread she was planning on killing more." I didn't know the truth, or the details of the murder she had committed. I had to reprimand myself. It was not my place to ask questions.

Still, my curiosity had peaked with this one. With the vampire who had an obsession with the town of Forks, a town I was certain I did not know yet felt in some way, tethered to. _Who are you, Victoria?_

Then, in an instant, the soothing peace of the forest was disturbed. Birds scattered, animals scurried away and the air shifted. I stopped, tucked my hair behind my ear and listened carefully...

I could hear something...a chorus of quiet but heavy thuds against the soil? A rhythm I could not recognize at first. It sounded like...like footsteps. Footsteps approaching fast, followed by...howling? What in the world? As it approached, I realized that whatever it was, it was a quadruped. A big one. Suddenly another howl filled the night sky, shortly followed by another and another...

A pack. By the sounds of the pairs of footsteps that echoed the first, there were several of them. An unfamiliar sensation took over, one I had not felt in a long time. Panic. I decided best not to wait and greet my pursuers, instead I threw my cloak over my shoulders, tied it and set off sprinting in the opposite direction with the beasts on my tail. I gave in to my instincts, giving them freedom to control my limbs at will. Without thinking about my movements or even the possibility of being taken down by the beasts, I tackled the incline of the mountain. My legs a blur of black against the dark emerald of the forest, almost dancing in ma zigzag like pattern to distract the monsters. I slid beneath broken tree trunks and ducked through the narrow spaces in— between.

They snapped at me, left and right, their fang tearing my cloak and closing in the space my ankles had been mile— seconds before. Their growls echoed in my ears, bouncing around my skull like they bounced off the trees. I had to think! To formulate a plan to escape the beasts...while escaping them! I poured all of my strength into my legs, feeling my muscles working as I bounded through the forest, darting around trunks of trees and hoping over moss— covered boulders. As I ran, I allowed for my hearing to range outwards, to put aside the immaterial noises around me. The sound of my breathing, my footsteps, the ruffle of my cloak in the wind and the rush of air I left behind, the rhythmic thumps of the following beasts, the snarls escaping their fang— filled mouths and the rapid ceaseless beating of their hearts.

Instead, I listened to the wind. In the distance, I could hear it as it ghosted. The sounds it made as it swayed between the trees, between leaves and into the sky, carrying the scent of...of stone? This was followed shortly by the sound of water? It was only when I felt the shift in the air and the wind repel against me that I realized I was heading straight for the side of a cliff. Perfect.

I urged myself on, trying to keep a steady mind and wit. Just a little farther!

I kicked off from the boulder; using all the momentum, I could gather to launch myself off the ground, into the sky and away from the snarling beasts behind me. The world flashed by, a blur of green, grey and black. Before a second had passed, I hit the side of the mountain and dug my fingers into the rough stony surface like a child playing with Styrofoam. I positioned my body so my knees were bent, the soles of my feet against the rock and I begun to scale the wall. It was only a matter of mere seconds before I reached up and rolled over the edge of the cliff— side and lay flat against the damp grass.

I could still hear the beasts incessant growling; I sprung up but only to my knees, lowering my back and angling myself into a crouch to get a better look at my fury pursuers. "It cannot be!" Wolves! They were wolves. For the first time in a long time, my eyes widened and my mouth hung open in shock. These were no ordinary animals; they were the size of horses, though with a far greater body mass. There were eight of them in sight, all a variety of colours and sizes; browns and greys and black. One of them seemed to hold a reddish tint.

There was something not quite right about this pack, not with their incredible strength and inhuman speed.

Something not mortal...

I did not want to call them it, but what else to name them? They were werewolves. I'd heard of creatures such as these before. Aro had once sat me down and told me stories of the Children of the Moon, creatures similar to the traditional werewolves of myth; the kind that ran on their hind legs, had opposable thumbs and stood with an upright stance. The kind that transformed only in response to the cycle of the moon.

These were not these creatures, these were something else. There was intelligence to them. A knowing.

The leader of the pack – or ought I to say Alpha? – bared two rows of sharp, jagged canines my way. Tall, fur the colour of the shadows they lurked in. He jerked his muzzle left, then right, giving silent commands and then a few members of the pack took off running, taking an alternate route to find me.

I decided to leave my cloak a few miles east, along with my jacket so I ran only in my boots, jeans and T— shirt. I knew there was a chance of them catching my scent before I could lose them but I had to try. It didn't take long for their collection of howls to hit me. They'd found my cloak and realized it had been a trick, a diversion.

By this point, I was too far gone to follow.

* * *

As I wondered through the pitch of the forest, closer and closer to Victoria, I realized the werewolves had to be some kind of protectors of this little town. They knew what I was and where I was heading the moment, they caught my scent. They knew exactly how to corner me and they tried their hardest to catch me in the right spot, the spot to take me down. They were experienced when it came to killing immortals and this revelation was discomforting.

Of course, I'd lost them and managed to sneak on by their borders without them noticing, yet still it had been a narrow escape. It made me wonder if these Wolves knew the vampires I was here to track, Victoria and her companion, Riley. Did my targets have some kind of alliance with the werewolves of Forks for protection? There was a reason Victoria had been spotted by Sebastian's men, moving time and time again from Seattle to Forks. Was this reason tied in the wolves?

If so then why hadn't Sebastian warned me ahead of time? Why hadn't Aro if he had known about them? However, they knew. They had to know, how could they not?

It was aggravating me, this surprise. Too many questions! I hated not being in the knowing. I sat down on the fallen trunk of a tree and pulled out my cell, I scrolled through my contacts to find Aro. He was under **BIG BAD BOSS #1** a name that often made me chuckle. His caller I.D photo had been once I had taken of the two of us on my most recent of birthdays. He had outright, blatantly refused to take a – what the mortals these days called it?– Selfie.

The man could sit for hours on end while an artist painted his portrait but could not spare a single second to take a photograph? Oh no, Selfie's were beneath him. Eventually, he took one as long as I agreed to no funny faces or filters, and it had long since been my caller I.D photo. Unlike many immortals my age, I did not complain about the advancements of technology or media. In fact, things such as Selfies, IPod's and even Twitter were my guilty pleasures.

My thumb hovered over the glowing green telephone icon for a while as I contemplated whether or not this was a wise move. I did not want Aro to feel I was – not worried, per se – jut confused. I did not want him to doubt me. I locked my phone and slid it back into my jeans. If the wolves proved to be a problem further, I would simply have to take them out of the situation too.

I'd have to...put them down.

* * *

 **FanWriter's Note:**

 **Hello everyone! Sorry for the late update, I'm having difficulty with my laptop at the moment so it may be hard to update on a regular basis. However, here is chapter three! I tried to fit a lot into this chapter, so it may seem a little rushed. Let me know what you think. Here, Isabella leaves Volterra and her home and travels the world killing Aro's enemies. We also learn who it is Isabella had to kill in Forks. Victoria. Let me know if this was who you expected and what you think will happen. Don't worry; we'll meet the Cullen's soon!**

* * *

 **Responding to your reviews:**

 _ **LG1998 Thank you for a lovely review! You are very on point with a lot of your theories! ;)**_

 _ **Anon: Thank you! She is very different from the Bella we know! I'm having fun changing her personality! She's much more sadistic and...Well, vampire in this story. As for the Kai and Isabella romance, there will be a lot more!**_

 _ **SharkSaver23: 'Wow' short but sweet, thanks!**_

 _ **: Thank you! I'd love to hear cool stories Ideas you have!**_

 _ **Guest: Um...alrighty then! Not quite how I see things, if I were a vampire I'd rather kill animals like the Cullen's. Sounds like you would rather kill humans. In some ways, I feel you. Each to their own.**_

 **~FanWriter Asher~**


	4. Chapter 4

**Isabella's POV:**

* * *

My little spout with the wolves had left me in a considerably irate mood. Not only was I expecting to track my kill and end her existence before the night was through; but I had been hoping to be back in Volterra before dawn. It would appear that neither one would happen anytime soon. I no longer had Victoria – whose scent I had yet to catch, and whose gift was to evade death – to worry about but also the feral, exasperating werewolves to deal with also.

I was not pleased.

Luckily, the simple-minded mutts had fallen for my diversion and lost my scent, giving me an opportunity to slip by their borders unnoticed and sneak further into town. I decided that for the moment, I was safest on the streets and among the humans. I knew the risk, I knew they would return and perhaps catch my scent but I also knew they would not expose themselves to the mortals. Unlike me, they could not blend in.

It was a Friday night, this meant the streets were busy but even so, the people continued to stare at me as I strode on by. I could not blame them. The majority of the humans in the town were average looking at best, their true beauty retracted by the flaws of mortality. Yet there I was, tall and slender with curves in all the right places, flawless luminous skin, flowing thick locks and lips you could not help but want to nibble.

The picture of perfection, really.

Their eyes lingered on my own; I realized at that moment that I no longer had my jacket or my hood to hide my face, my eyes specifically. It mattered not. Some strange humans enjoyed going about their day while wearing outrageously coloured contact lenses in their eyes, some even wore red ones. These were the awfully annoying fans of terrible vampire novels. Saddening.

* * *

After a while, I decided that Victoria must not have been in town that night and it made me grind my teeth. A wasted journey to Forks. I had allowed the wolves to catch my scent, as well as leave it all over town and for nothing. I was going to leave and return to Port Angeles when suddenly the wind shifted and it hit me, a scent that was not human, not werewolf but certainly immortal.

I turned and pushed my way through a crowd of teenagers who were laughing about something, one of them – a boy with a goofy smile, unkempt blonde hair and a football jersey – gave me a second glance but before he could do or say anything, I darted around the corner and slipped into the shadows. The scent lead me away from central Forks and to what I discovered to be the local high school.

I scoffed as I passed the sign: Forks High School, Home of the Spartans. The same slogan on the back of the kid's jersey.

Oh please. I shot from the bottom of the steps to the reception, the doors were locked obviously; I could have easily broken through them. I could have broken through the walls if I so desired, though decided it best to maintain a low profile. So instead, I leapt up and over the main building, landing onto the roof. There! A skylight. I made my way over and managed to open it from the above, I dropped down.

I decided to look around. The high school was as one would suspect. Smelling of a variation of human blood, as well as sweat and deodorant and perfume and the chemicals from the science lab as well as the old textbooks in the classrooms I passed. I could smell a rotting cheese sandwich in one of the lockers by my side. Why would Victoria or Riley come here?

I inspected several off the classrooms, broke into several lockers and even made my way through the cafeteria. A strong immortal scent, several, actually, lingered on one of the tables in the far corner. Hmm? I decided to check the receptionists office, the files in the cabinet for any clue as to why two immortals were spending their days in those halls yet there names were not there, there were no names I recognized.

The High School turned out to be a dead-end. There was nothing but the scent. It did not make sense to me. Although I did catch a stronger scent within the halls of the school, it would be hard for me to miss if I crossed it again. I slipped out of the high school the same way I entered and headed back towards the trees. If Victoria was in town, she would more than likely be on foot and the only way to avoid being spotted running on foot would be in the forest. It seemed the most likely place to catch her.

Therefore, I set off running. I ran for miles, all around the border of Forks, even up into the mountains where the bears and the cougars were sleeping. I caught many scents but nothing vampire. Every so often, the howl of the werewolves would hit me but they were far off, maybe giving up on their search and believing they had managed to scare some random nomad away from their lands. It would cause me a lot less trouble having to evade them. It did not take me long to catch the same scent as before, the scent that lingered in the halls of the high school.

I followed it to a small street, to the house at the end. A small house, with white wooden siding, a dark red door, cracked slate roof tiles and a soft glow of a fire from inside the window. There were two cars parked outside of the house, a police cruiser and an old, faded red truck. I knew enough about cars to recognize it as a Chevy. I had always liked the funky style of Chevy's but had never owned one myself; the Volturi would never allow such a vehicle. There was something about the house and the truck that made me smile. So...ordinary.

The sound of a heartbeat brought me to my senses and I darted up to the house and peered through the window. Sprawled out across a torn, green sofa was a human man; his curly brown hair was out of place but matched the stuffy moustache warming his lip. He was asleep, breathing heavily. I could hear his heart and his lungs. He did not seem to be in great health, from what I could tell. I wondered why the scent of the vampire, of Victoria, had lead me here. Was she planning to kill this man?

I decided it best to look around. I stepped back down from the porch and glanced upwards, getting a good look at the house. A window was open. I bent my knees and leapt, the square shape of the window came to meet me; I held the frame tightly and slipped inside, as quiet and as softly as the wind.

The bedroom was small, with a single wooden bed pressed against the wall, the cover a terrible purple flower pattern. A cracked wooden desk, laptop that was made years ago and an old rocking chair in the corner that had lost all-purpose in life. My entering the room had disturbed the air, causing dust motes to spring to life and twirl in the air. I could taste the emptiness of movement, of life. Whomever this room belonged to, it had been some time since they entered. Their scent had already faded. I was curious.

I slipped out of the bedroom and into another, then into the bathroom and the closet and then down the stairs, inspecting the house for any indication as to why Victoria would come here – come here and not kill the human. I ghosted by the sofa, leaning almost eerily over the human. His scent was strong and sweet, almost tangy. It made me thirsty being so close, yet killing a human would stir up a fuss among the locals.

I decided there was nothing more in the house that could aid me in my hunt, so I left through the upstairs window and dropped to the ground with a light thump. I had been planning to set off back towards the town, in hopes of catching the scent again and following it to another location though it did not happen. Instead, I felt something. I felt eyes on back. I was not alone at the house.

I knew she was here before I even turned to face her, but sure enough when I turned and there she was. Victoria. She stood just past the tree line, wearing an over-sized coat the same colour as the trees around her. The photograph Sebastian had given me did not do her justice; she was beautiful. Her hair was brilliant red, like a flame. However, the night was still and frozen, her hair seemed to shimmer slightly, as if it were alive. Her almost black eyes found me as I stalked forward.

"Who are you?" Her voice was child-like, timid even.

"A friend of Aro's." I answered, stepping into the moonlight. Her eyes widened and her body tensed. She knew, then. She knew Aro had sent me to kill her.

"B-but you're- I saw!" I had no idea what she was talking about; it did not matter to me. What mattered was Victoria was a fifty yards away from me. Fifty yards between my kill and I.

"I'm afraid your excuses are invalid. You have crossed Aro; therefore you must pay the price." I ran. I kicked off with enough speed to tear up the dirt beneath my boots, leaving gaping marks in the ground. The earth moved beneath me, the wind screaming in my ears as I soared. Victoria had already set off running, one second she stood there with a wild expression among her features and the next she was sprinting in the opposite direction with me on her tail.

I allowed my ears to range outwards, to listen to the sound of the wind and the chorus of rustling leaves. The sound of her footsteps and my own and then the sound of...water. I knew exactly where she headed. As we drew closer, she did not stop. Instead, she launched herself off the jagged edge of the cliff. Her feet came up; her back arched and her knees came up to touch her chest. I kicked off from the edge, splintering the rock beneath my boots with the momentum. We soared for over the waterfall that raged below us, across the creek in the mountainside; I mimicked her movements and brought my knees up, ready to embrace the impact. I hit the ground a second later and my hand shot up to reach for her hair. She came to an abrupt stop, dropping low and sticking her legs out. I did not have time to jump over them, and before I knew it my head bounced off the rough stone, the sheer power behind my run sent me tumbling into the trees.

That had pissed me off. I was on my feet and moving before the second has passed, charging after the tumble of fiery locks a hundred yards ahead. It was almost amusing. My other targets either fought and died or surrendered and died, not one of them had feared me enough to run. "You may be able to escape your other enemies, Victoria!" I called over the roar of the wind, "But you cannot escape me!" I noticed in which direction she titled her head, hinting to me unknowingly in which direction she was going to turn.

Fool. She was fast but I was faster. I ducked under a tree-trunk and lunged into her path. She skidded to a stop and tried to run but before she knew it, I was on her. My feet came up and rested on her stomach while the weight of my body took her down. She hit the ground with a child-like cry, my shoulders pinning her there in a way that very much reminded me of Kai. I looked into her eyes and smirked.

My hand closed in on her throat, my fingertips digging into her neck and causing cracks to spiral outwards. My teeth bared, my eyes narrowed and just as I went to sink my teeth into her throat and tear her little head from her body, someone grabbed a handful of my hair and launched me a hundred yards away. A screech broke through my lips as I once again hit the ground, this time I landed on the balls of my feet and skidded, uprooting the earth.

My head snapped up in their direction and I found another figure stood where I had been seconds before. Male, from the outline of his coat with a hood over his head; he ignored me entirely and I watched as his hand swung for Victoria's head, his fingers bent into bone coloured claws. Victoria rolled onto her knees, narrowly missing the nails that would have otherwise beheaded her. She slammed her palm into the stomach of the man in black, the power behind her hit sent him soaring up and over my head.

I heard a cry as his body slammed against the trunk of a tree, snapping through it and sending pieces of wood and bark everywhere. I heard the shuffle of Victoria's subtle leather boots, heard the soil beneath them turn with her movements and I knew she was about to run. I ignored the man in black, the vampire that had for some reason unbeknownst to me, had interrupted my kill to take it for his own, and lunged for the red haired girl. Victoria turned and leapt, flying a good twenty-foot into the air and landing on a stable tree branch. She glanced down once before throwing herself from that tree to another, and another, her claws sinking into the wood like butter.

With a growl, I rammed my shoulder into the tree she was heading for, taking it out from beneath her and she fell to the ground. The moment she hit the earth, she bounced straight back up and was sprinting away from me once more. I glanced back at the figure once as he was getting to his feet, knocking off the fallen tree trunk as if it was a twig.

I set off after Victoria. I poured all of my strength into my legs, bounding after her with each stride. I heard the footsteps of the man in black, pursuing us. I wanted to get a look at him, to see if I knew him but I did not want to take my eyes of the redhead. I could not lose her! I ground my teeth and pushed myself harder. I was fast, very fast.

However, she, apparently, was smarter. She managed to change her direction in a seconds notice, darting left and charging downhill on a course perpendicular than her own. I managed to turn and peruse her but her rash decision to change direction had stilled me for a moment, giving her the opportunity to vanish from my line of sight. Shit!

At this point, the man in pursuit of us had stopped dropped back, letting Victoria go. Weak. I had his scent. I would come back for him later.

I continued running, following her scent as far as I could until I came to a river. Then she was gone. It was as if she had vanished, not a single trace of her left over, nothing but her scent. It stopped at the river. She was in the water. I snarled and set off running, watching the water for her yet she had gone. I could not see her or her flaming hair anywhere. She was gone. I stopped at the edge of the river and watched it expand out into open water. I had been too late.

* * *

Victoria had escaped and it was all the fault of the man in black. Anger bubbled up from within; I could feel it burning in my throat and in my veins. Victoria would not die tonight but the vampire that interrupted certainly would. Unlike Victoria, his scent still lingered in the air. Sweet, like chocolate mixed with rosemary. Strong. Pungent. Easy to follow.

It did not take me long to track. I followed it a couple of miles back into the forest until it left the tree-line and I saw him walking along the side of an empty road. The orange/yellow streetlights shown down, leaving enough light for me to clearly see his outline. His hair was down, his hair an unusual shade of bronze. A part of me wanted to just throw myself at him, to tear his had from his shoulders but another part of me, a part buried deep down, wanted to find out whom he was. Who he was and why he had thought it acceptable to interrupt my kill and then let her get away!

"Hey!" I screeched, my high-pitched yell bouncing of the trees on either side of us. Tall, thick and dark like were in a maze of emeralds.

He stopped in his tracks but did not turn. I stalked forward to the middle of the road; my feet were set apart and my hair down one side of my shoulder, my hands were clenched into fists ready to destroy and my lips pulled back, barring my teeth.

It was only when he spun to face me that I got a good look at his face. I must admit, the bronze haired boy was hot.

I was not one for love at first sight; the entire concept was completely ridiculous, though with this stranger, it may have been lust at first sight instead. He was perhaps the most physically attractive man I had ever laid eyes upon, or tying in place with Kai. As he stood there, staring at me, my eyes traced over his pale white features: the hard square of his jaw, the softer curve of his full lips — twisted into some horribly mangled...thing? A cross between a smile and disgust? Make up your mind, pretty boy.

He straightened up, standing a good few feet taller than I, now I could see his toned body and the muscles stretching the short sleeves of his T-shirt. Hmm. A shame I intended to separate his pretty head from his as equally pretty body for letting my kill get away. I bared my teeth but stopped when he dropped his hood. It was his eyes that had stopped me in my path; they were unlike anything I had ever seen before. They were wide, warm and the colour of liquid gold, framed by a thick fringe of black lashes.

A vampire with – with golden eyes? I had never heard of such a thing, the eyes of our kind were the colour of the blood we was cursed to consume. This was what Aro had told me. It mattered not, this vampire had crossed me; I resumed my position and bared him my teeth.

His perfect lip quivered, "B-Bella?"

* * *

 **FanWriter's Note:**

 **Hello Everyone. Next chapter is here! Hope you enjoy! In this chapter, Bella has escaped the pack and is looking around Forks. She has caught the scent of a vampire, follows it to a few spots in town including the Swan Residence! Eventually, she finds Victoria and chases her down but is stopped by none other than Edward! Any theories on what will happen next?**

* * *

 **Responding to your reviews:**

 _ **Goldielover: Hey, thanks for the review**_ _ **by Twitward I'm guessing you mean Edward, ha-ha. I guess we will have to wait and see.**_

 _ **Devora13: Strangely enough, I did not plan to include the queen due to her birthday. It was just by chance, ha-ha. Thank you for your review!**_

 _ **Stargazer1364: Thank you, lovely review. Bella is so boss in this fic, I know! I rather wanted this new and improved Bella to be a badass. To be kind of the total opposite to the Bella we know and love (or hate)**_

 _ **XXX1994: It was kind of an information chapter I guess. Victoria is in this story, as is the pack and as you see now, so is Edward. The rest of the Cullen's are too. Everyone from the original Saga appears really! Not sure what you mean by 'what is the problem with Victoria?' Well other than her murderous nature, Aro wants her dead for a reason unknown to Bella. A reason we will find out eventually. As for the older the vampire the more powerful, I do not think it is exactly like that. Newborns are powerful as human blood still lingers in their tissues, what I meant in that chapter was that the older vampires were more experienced, in all aspects of vampire life therefore making Bella a more challenging opponent.**_

 **~FanWriter Asher~**


	5. Chapter 5

**Isabella's POV:**

* * *

It amazed me, the influence of words. How simple sounds of the lips, letters formed into gathered syllables, could sway one's emotions. How they could transform and shift a sentiment entirely in a single moment. What amazed me more was the knowledge that something as small and insignificant as a word – a name – could render an approximately thousand-year-old immortal such as I to a state of absolute bewilderment.

Not to remind myself that it had been the second time in less than a minute I had given in to surprise.

I had to understand, in anyway comprehensible, that the golden-eyed vampire standing before me had said my name – well, some twisted version. In less than a fraction of a second, I analyzed his face and memorized all I could of his features. The shape of his jaw, the arch of his brows, the unique bronze sheen of his hair and the curve of his cupids bow; in an attempt at matching his face to the face of every immortal I had ever had the pleasure or misfortune to meet – this included the living and the deceased.

Although this was all for naught. I did not know this immortal. I would have certainly remembered the eyes.

"Who do you think you are?" I asked him, trying to keep my calm as I sauntered towards him, down the middle of the wide and empty road. "Interfering with my kill? Then to try to claim it as your own. Even laying a hand upon me? Do you not know who I am?"

Then a thought occurred to me. I was Isabella. _The_ Isabella. Everyone knew my name. My name was as famous to the immortal world as Shakespeare was to the mortal one. Well, perhaps the mortal world a hundred years prior or so; the mortals today would more commonly recognize the name Kardashian though I would slaughter any man, woman, child or immortal that dared to compare me to the likes of such ignominy.

That was it. He had heard of me, perhaps seen my face through the eyes of another – or my portrait hanging on one of the halls of my home during a visit. In one way, I was flattered, in another I wanted to end him.

I wanted to hit him, to lift him in the air by his throat, to embrace the beauty of my teeth in his neck and listen to the sound of his shattering skin like the distorted jingle of wind chimes. To warm my palms by the flaming pyre of his remains. Although as I went to do just that, he grabbed me by the face and forced our mouths together.

His lips were warm, his breath hot. One hand slid up over my shoulder, around my thin neck while the other held my face to his. He pulled back with a gasp. One hand on my cheek, the other intertwined in my hair. His burning golden eyes burrowing into my ruby coloured ones. Soft and Harsh. Light and dark. The contrast almost too much.

"Bella!" He wept.

I swung and cracked him against the side of the head with my elbow; he spun on the spot though when he went to face me again my nails raked across his torso, tearing apart his t-shirt in streaks and leaving long, divots in his otherwise perfectly preserved chest. He leaped backwards, evading my second strike and certain death. "Bella? Bella- Stop!" Another blow, this one to the chest with my boot. He ducked under my swipe and rolled backwards until he was crouched low. I realized in this moment that the bronze haired boy was refusing to fight back. Why?

He then turned away from me (foolish move) and towards the trees. I realized why only a second later. We were not alone. At first I thought of the wolves, pictured them charging from the forest and tearing the boy and I apart though I listened carefully and realized the footsteps came in pairs. Two legged. Vampires.

I jumped back, distancing myself from the tree line just as they emerged. Four vampires shot towards us. From the way, the newcomers stood around the bronze-haired boy, with their bodies angled to shield his own, it became clear to me they were his coven mates. Five of them altogether, one of the largest coven's I'd met. The only other Coven's I had heard of as large as this one was a coven of five in Denali, we had come across from time to time and still existed to this day, a coven of six created by a vampire known as Hilda sometime in the sixteenth century. I had not been there at the time – I had been on another mission – though Aro had informed me of how this coven of six immortals had been earning themselves too much attention from the mortal population, how the newborns were savaged and crazed and simply had to be eradicated to maintain the secret of our kind. Our own Heidi, who I had seen only days before, had been a member of that coven and the only member whose thoughts were penitent and pure.

Well – allegedly. We all knew how Aro liked his special friends. In addition, there had been another coven. Of course, in the south in the mid-eighteen hundreds, there had been constant brutal battles for territory by numerous covens – or I ought to say armies. Immortal Armies were illegal; Aro had outlawed those centuries ago. It was mostly out of fear than one day such an army may plot to overthrow him and therefore overthrow me, as was the reason anyone formulating an army, any immortal a member of such an army or anyone who had inquired knowledge of an army and had withheld this information from Aro, had to be destroyed.

Ironic, considering my own coven was an army in itself, with over fifty members within Volterra alone, not to mention our members dotted around the world.

I should have known of this coven of five, they certainly did not appear to be newborns. Aro would have known of their existence, surely, then why had I been left in the dark? Like the boy in front of me, they shared his strange and abnormal golden eyes. Each of them.

"Edward?" The man touched the boy whose name was accordingly Edward on the shoulder. Although he spoke to the boy, his eyes were also on me. He was handsome, maybe more so than the boy was though in a mature way. His blonde hair curled at the collar of his white shirt and his eyes, in spite of the colour, were as gentle as those of a human. By his side there was a woman who, although beautiful – with her caramel coloured hair, heart-shaped face and motherly smile – seemed to be older than the rest of them, in her late twenties (perhaps early thirties) at the time of her transition.

"It's not possible." A voice peaked up and my head snapped in her direction. She was as small like a child and thin in the extreme. Her hair was jet black, cropped short and pointing out in every direction. By her side stood a young man ravaged by scars much like my own, they spaced thickly across his jaw and neck. His tawny eyes were sharp, a shade darker than his shoulder-length hair. There was ferocity to his eyes, containing all the rage of a violent lion. He looked intently at me, his body ready to spring.

"Bella?" Edward spoke again. "Can you hear me?"

Could I hear him? The sheer stupidity of his question made me scoff aloud. Did he think me some crazed newborn that had succumb to the hunter, who's senses dulled and faded in comparison to the immense lure of the thirst? I was no newborn. If anything, this bronze haired vampire was a child compared to me.

It hit me then. I was outnumbered. I was talented, shielded and dangerous, this was true, though against a coven of five whom I knew nothing off? A dangerous risk if I were to take it. I remembered then that I was Isabella. I was Overseer of the entire Volturi Guard.

"Who is the leader of this coven?" I demanded. They glanced at one another; four of them (including the bronze haired boy) glanced at the older blonde male. "You?" He did not answer me. He looked at Edward and Edward shook his head once. Answering an unspoken question.

"Is it her?" The female mate of the leader asked. Edward nodded.

"I asked you a question." It came out in a growl, averting their attention back to me.

"I am the leader of this Coven." He finally answered. "What is your name?" The tone of his voice hinted at another question hidden beyond this one.

"I am Isabella, Overseer to the Volturi Guard." They looked at one another as if – as if they had never heard of me. Impossible.

"Isabella?" Edward asked, his lip twitched up as if he found humour in my simplistic answer.

"Edward." The short girl spoke. Warning filled the word. "Careful."

"How long have you been Overseer to the Guard?" The leader asked me. I frowned at him and gave him a crooked smile.

"I'm sorry," I laughed, pacing back and forth "Who are you to question me?"

"My name is Carlisle." Carlisle? The name was oddly familiar. I made a connection. I had once simply been checking on Demetri and Felix when I had overheard Aro's conversation from beyond the doors to the throne room. He had mentioned a friend of his by the name of Carlisle to Caius and Marcus, how he had spoken with him recently regarding a pet of theirs. However, I had not met Carlisle personally, not until this moment. "This is my coven. My wife, Esme." He laid a hand gently on the arm of the caramel haired woman who tried to give me a humble yet clearly terrified smile. I noted how he said wife and not mate. "My sons, Edward and Jasper and my daughter, Alice." Edward was the bronze haired boy so Jasper had to be the blonde haired one with the scars, Alice: the pixie-like girl.

"I see..." I finally replied, "Well – Carlisle. I'm afraid I need to kill Edward." I intertwined my fingers, smiling at them. Esme looked concerned, panicked even.

"We cannot allow that. We maintain a permanent residence nearby. Why don't we meet there and discuss the issue at hand? Make a proper introduction?" He flashed me a smile. I could not help but laugh and shake my head.

"No." I laughed. Carlisle was trying to portray a calm demeanor. I could see right through him. "No. I have strict orders from my master to kill your boy here," I beckoned to Edward, stepping ever so carefully closer. Edward was still smiling. It was a little unnerving, truthfully. Who knew? For all I knew, they'd surrender Edward to me willingly than take me on and risk the wrath of Aro.

"Edward – Her mind?" Jasper asked. Edward turned to face me, his face expressionless. My mind? Did he possess an ability? Was he attempting to use it against me? Good luck, Edward. Over time, I'd learned to tell when others were attempting to penetrate my mind in any way, shape or form; it felt like a little push on the inside of your head. A prod, really. Whatever his Gift, Edward could not use it against me.

"No." Edward answered. Ha.

"Aro would not give that order. He and I are old friends, he adores Edward." Carlisle challenged. I realized this must have been the truth. Edward was Gifted which meant Aro must have known him.

"Okay, you got me. I just really wish to kill him. I mean, he did just try to kill me – then kiss me." I laughed as if this would win them over.

"Bella. How is this possible, did you?" Edward begun but Alice was suddenly by his side, grabbing his shoulder.

"Edward, don't!" She demanded. "Look." He looked at her and I figured it out. A telepath. He was reading her thoughts but why? Hmm.

"This does not need to come to a fight. Think clearly, Bella-" Carlisle tried.

Okay, that was it. I clenched my teeth together, "The next one of you to call me 'Bella' is going to die a very long, very slow...painful death. Got that?"

He nodded ruefully, "I apologise. Isabella. You must know if you attempt to kill Edward, we will defend him. You will not survive five against one. Alice here is gifted with the ability of foresight," he glanced at Alice who stepped forward.

"It is true. If you attack, you'll die, B-Isabella." She looked at me with a hurt expression on her face, as if she wanted to hug me or something. Foresight, huh? Aro must have known of her? Why was she not one of us?

"You severely underestimate my skills, Carlisle." I sniggered. Although I knew, they spoke the truth. Whether or not Alice could foresee my death should I had continued and attacked, I did not want to risk it either way. He was correct. Five against one, the odds were not in my favour this time. "You are lucky, Edward." I told him, turning to him directly. "You will not die tonight."

With this, I turned and bolted from the scene. I headed into the forest, zigzagging through the trees at lightning speed. I then heard the yellow-eyed vampires behind me yelling at one another. Something about Edward refusing to let me go, he had to know. Carlisle tried to convince him to return home, to calm down until he could get in touch with Aro and discover the truth.

Nevertheless, their attempts were futile. I heard Edward on my tail. "Bella! Bella wait!" He called me Bella. I ground my teeth. Oh, what I would have given to turn and collide with him. To complete the job. "Bella, It's me!" It's me? I had no idea what he meant, nor did I intend to find out. I heard the others perusing us, calling only Edward's name in desperation.

I had to admit, Edward was fast. He caught me in his line of sight a few times though I was faster. I took an alternate route than before, heading not for the border of Forks but instead for the cliff-side. It took me less than a minute to reach it and when I did, I kicked off from the end and dove a good twenty foot into the air before hitting the freezing temperatures of the raging water. The waves thrashed and tossed me, though I begun kicking against the current and was gone within seconds. Leaving the strange coven on the side of the cliff, the others were holding Edward still whilst he cried my name.

* * *

Sebastian sat in the lobby of the hotel, sprawled out across one of the lush cushioned sofas in the corner and from what I could hear, flirting with a handsome young man. He spotted me when I entered and within a second, he was by my side. "You're wet." He stated the obvious. I'd wrung out my clothing after leaving the dark, depths of the ocean though it had dried off in my run home. I turned towards the elevator and pressed the button, waiting. He said nothing until we reached my floor.

"It is done." A statement, not a question.

"Not entirely. She escaped me tonight."

"She escaped?" I turned down the hallway and headed towards my room.

"Yes."

"Are you telling a joke? It is a very bad one if you are?" He teased. I growled and his smile faded. "Wait – are you serious?" The shock in his voice made me clench my teeth. If they could, I was certain my cheeks would flame with colour. To admit to a lower ranking guard member that I had allowed my target to escape was more than embarrassing.

"Yes? Are you an actual imbecile? Yes, she escaped. It is her gifted ability to evade death, which, you may have misplaced the memory, is the reason we have been sent to hunt her. By the supernatural law, she has the capacity to escape any killing blow whether it by my hand, or yours or even Aro's." Even bronze haired boys named Edward. "You cannot expect me to complete such a challenging task in one night."

"In fact, Isabella, I expected nothing less." Sebastian did not see it coming. My clenched fist hit him with such force, his feet left off the ground and his head snapped back, cracking the wall behind him in a way similar to the way I'd cracked his nose. He swore, holding his face in agony, but before he had a chance to look up I had entered my room and slammed the door in his face.

He would not dare retaliate, by blow or by word. As I stated, I was infamous. Aro's right hand. He would not dare strike me, not if he wanted to keep his head. He was expandable, I was not. After a moment, I heard Sebastian chuckle and his footsteps recede down the hall. I spun back to my room, too full of burning adrenaline to just sit and relax, but what was there to do?

I heard it then. From the room next door. _Thump, thump, thump,_ Of the headboard against the wall. _"Oh – Josh! Josh! Harder, Josh!"_ Cried out the human woman being fucked by her recently wed husband. They were to spend the night in Seattle before boarding a flight to Barbados. (I'd heard them speaking through the wall earlier as I was preparing to take my leave for Forks)

I tried to drown it out, to listen to music and to read one of the few tomes I had packed in my case though I could not. Still on edge from my confrontation with the werewolves and the unusual golden-eyed coven, I found myself irritated more so by the human couple than I would have usually been any other night. So naturally, I left the already limited privacy of my room and walked into theirs.

I followed the trail of fallen items of clothing, the sounds of the headboard, her cries and the rhythmic slapping of their fragile, fleshy bodies together. I kicked the door to the attached bedroom in and almost off its hinges. The couple on the bed – a well-groomed man with an average body and more than average tool, and a woman with obviously fake breast implants, orange tan and bleached blonde hair – did not even sense my arrival before it was too late.

I wrung the woman's head in my arms, snapping her spine and crushing her skull with a crack and a squelch, spraying blood over the still thrusting naked man. That was, of course, until he opened his eyes and realized his wife's head was no facing the opposite direction. He went to yell, to cry out and scramble away when he saw me towering over him.

"You picked the wrong night to consummate your marriage." I told him, before I tore his vocal chords from his throat.

Now not only did the bedroom smell of sweat, perfume, aftershave, wine and various human bodily fluids, but now also held the coppery scent of freshly spilled blood. As did I. The woman's nearly headless body collapsed to the side and slumped off the bed, spilling a pool of thick, dark blood at my feet. I felt my throat burn with temptation.

 _What the hell?_ I shrugged, turned to the man, crawled up beside him and sunk my teeth into his flesh.

* * *

I returned to my room after feeding and headed straight for the en suite. I was drenched in blood. In spite of the fact I had recently fed, my throat still ached at the scent of it. We immortals had a hunger that was insatiable. I stripped down, not caring even a little about the bloody footprints; I had left in my way, of the stains on the carpet. I filled the over-sized, circular Jacuzzi with warm, bubble-filled water and stepped into the tub.

I slid as far down as I could, until my hair floated on the water's surface, until the red-tainted bubbles were covering all but my face. The water was hot, burning hot and the bubbles were scented jasmine, calming. I reached across to the toilet and took my phone. After a quick text to Sebastian, informing him that his men had a cleanup in room 21 C, I shuffled my music playlist and listened to the soothing sounds as I allowed the water to relax me.

However, when I closed my eyes another pair of eyes was awaiting me. Two topaz orbs. His eyes. Edward. Edward and his coven.

What was it about them that drew my thoughts their way? Was it their unusually coloured eyes and the knowledge I knew nothing of how they came to be that bothered me so? Was it that they had known me by name? In the moment, I had dismissed this as the result of my ever-growing popularity among our kind though what if it was not.

Perhaps this unsettlement was due to the kiss. Edward had kissed me. I hadn't thought much of it at the time, though out of all I had been through earlier that night being kissed by a complete and utter stranger entirely unprovoked ought to have been something to think about. It had happened in the past, of course. Other immortals and humans alike I had come across had flirted with me, foolishly copped a feel and surely with suicidal intentions, forced a kiss from me. Not one of those individuals had I spared, not one but Edward.

It was not like the other times. The others had truly believed themselves worthy of me, but not Edward. It was as if he knew me though I did not know him. It was as If I were already his mate! Preposterous. Was I absolutely sure, I had never met him before? Yes. Was I absolutely certain immortals could not develop mental health issues? No.

Now safely far enough from them to formulate a comprehensible thought, I decided that whatever that was with the golden ones, it was something new. Something secret. A secret I decided to uncover. The next day I would return to Forks not only kill Victoria but to confront the golden ones and discover the truth.

* * *

 **FanWriter's Note:**

 **Hello Everyone. Chapter 5! In this chapter, Isabella meets the Cullen's! Some of you may have wondered where Rosalie and Emmett were, don't worry. They show up soon enough! I tried to make it as if the Cullen's knew Bella, though not sure how it came across. Please review and let me know your theories for the upcoming chapters! :D**

* * *

 **Responding to your Reviews:**

 _ **SharkSaver23: Thank you. :] Hope you enjoyed this one.**_

 _ **Devora13: Interesting theory though not quite. In a sense...maybe? Though Not as I believe you are thinking. As Isabella stated whilst in the bedroom of the Swan house, no one had entered that bedroom in a long time. The scent had faded. However, the quilt and Bella are connected.**_

 _ **XXX1994: Thank you :] He is not hunting Victoria alone as we see here in this chapter. We find out more about why Victoria is on Isabella's list later, though all she knows is that Aro wants her dead. It's not her job to ask questions.**_

 **~FanWriter Asher~**


	6. Chapter 6

**Isabella's POV:**

* * *

I slipped out of the hotel early the following morning, not bothering to waste my precious time with Sebastian or his men. His comment the night before still infuriated me, though after a night of unanswered questions and questionable memories, I understood his surprise - and initial shock - upon discovering I had returned unsuccessful in my hunt.

Only once in my millennia had I returned to Volterra from a hunting mission, stood before the Trio, Aro, and my Sire, and had to explain to them why I had returned without blood on my hands - metaphorically speaking, of course.

Once back in the early years of my immortal life, approximately eleven years after my rebirth, Aro had decided the time had come for his protégée Isabella to leave the confines of our home and to travel the world! Hunting down, tearing apart and burning his chosen ones along the way. By this time, I had already mastered several martial arts and battle formations, by this time I was already a lethal, killing machine.

This had been the first time I met Sebastian and his men, the first time he and I travelled the world together. It had taken just over a month to destroy the immortals on the first list, though when it came to the last target - an annoyingly chipper woman by the name of Clementine - It had taken me four months to track her down, and even then, she escaped my killing blow. Another two months later, I'd decided it best to return to Volterra, against Sebastian's warnings, without completing the hunt.

I would come to rue that decision for the remainder of my existence. That day, I had knelt before Aro and confessed I was not ready, I pleaded for his help.

This had not bided well with him.

He had commanded I leave the city at once and not return until Clementine was dead. I had been angry; I had yelled and fought, thrown objects around the room like a child having a tantrum. In a way, I had been a child. Since the day of my transformation, Aro had been a father figure to me. He cared for me, taught me the ways of our world, our kind. He taught me to read, to write, to play instruments, to hunt and to protect myself. We were not only friends. I was, in the simplest way of describing it, a daughter to him. However, as I said before, no matter how close we were...he was my master. He was the King of our kind and to disobey him was a risky move.

In fact, he had ordered Felix and several other Guard members to beat me within an inch of my new life. For a whole three days, they kept me locked away in one of the dungeon cells where they tortured me non-stop. They broke my body, tore off limbs, set me on fire only to extinguish the flames before any permanent damage occurred. I'd screamed and cried, begged and pleased and it had all been for naught. Once the three days were up, Aro had me dragged back to the throne room where he apologised for extensive, intense methods, though punishment was required for such insubordination.

He had told me the only way I would learn and grow, to develop into the powerful young immortal he envisioned I could be, was to be motivated and determined. To suffer pain, loss, and torment and to turn those hurtful emotions into power, to use that power and aspire.

In a way, I did not entirely regret that decision to ask for help, because it made me stronger. It made me the immortal I am today. He told me it had all been out of love and I believed him. Therefore, on the day, I stood up in spite of my broken body and limped out of Volterra to finish the hunt. It had taken me sixty-one years to track down Clementine (She was Gifted - an ability similar to Victoria's though where Victoria could sense danger and evade it, Clementine could see the dangers in the future, that were to come. This allowed her to make choices that would eradicate any threat before she faced it) though in the end, I tracked her down and with sheer will, strength and determination, she lost her life.

Aro, after decades, had finally welcomed me home with open arms.

Since then, I had become only more legendary. Of course, my reputation had taken time to build, just as it had taken me time to learn and to train, to develop my own skills as well as identity the skills of my enemies, though it had been centuries since a target had slipped by. These days, my hunts - depending on the length of the list and locations of the targets - lasted approximately a fortnight.

The night before, as I set off in pursuit of Victoria, I had assumed I would tear her apart, burn the pieces and be on a flight home within the hour. Little had I known exactly what I had been running into: Werewolves and strange scents, mysterious attacks, Edward and the other Golden Ones? Still, it mattered not.

I refused to be branded a failure yet again. It was never an option. So whether it took me a month, a year, a decade or a century I would not return home to Volterra and my coven until I destroyed whomever Aro pleased.

* * *

This time, I had a plan.

Instead of sprinting straight through the border into Forks, trailing my scent behind and leading the werewolves straight to me, I decided to take an alternate route into town. A mile or two before I reached Forks, I diverted my course into one perpendicular to the original and headed straight for the ocean. I dove head first into the now calmer waters, kicking off from the edge of the cliff-side. I swam further away from land, far enough into open water until I was sure my scent had faded, lost beneath the waves, and then I went back under and headed for Forks. Like on land, we were fast even in the water, swimming at speeds of up to fifty miles per hour. It did not take me long before I passed the border into Forks unnoticed and emerged from the still water onto a beach.

The beach was dark, thousands of blandly coloured pebbles crunched beneath my boots. Trees stripped of their leaves bordered one side of the beach, where buildings and houses lined the other. I was wet. Again. My clothes heavier and sea water squelching in my boots. My hair plastered to my scalp. I did not like being wet.

I leapt from the beach and landed on the pavement in the street, looking around at the town. The majority of those around me were of Native American heritage, their skin a coppery glow, their eyes as dark as the sands and the hair atop their heads as black as night. I heard someone speaking in a language I did not entirely recognize, though I did recognize a sign in the distance. Written in red letters were the words: La Push.

A few people walking by stopped when they saw me, a strange newcomer standing on the beach, clad all in soaking black clothing. My eyes as bright and as dangerous as fire. One woman yelled and turned, sprinting down the street and spilling the contents of her shopping basket across the road. Others also hurried out of sight. I could see it in their eyes. They knew exactly what I was and I knew exactly where I was.

The Quileute reservation. Home of the werewolves.

It didn't take long - a few seconds passed before a howl hit me.

"Well, this isn't good," I mumbled. A part of me wanted to start slaughtering people immediately, to show the wolves what I could do and what would come to those they loved if they dared to cross me. This part of me also wanted to wait until their arrival, to slaughter them and tear their heads from their bodies. Perhaps make a stylish fur coat. Those back at home would certainly enjoy it.

"Oh, Nice coat Isabella!"

"Thanks, its one hundred percent werewolf fur!"

Hmm. However, it was a risk. The wolves were a pack, a pack of strong, powerful and potentially dangerous creatures. I did not want to risk losing my life before I got the answered I sought. Therefore, I darted across the road and launched myself into the cover of the forest.

I remained in the forests of Forks and the surrounding area for a good half an hour; instead of trying to hide my scent, I decided to trail it everywhere by moving in alternating routes, leaving my scent lingering in the air, no matter which path you turn. This way, once the wolves caught up with me, they would be distracted and lost, not knowing which of the dozens of trails to follow.

Genius, I know.

As I headed back into the middle of Forks, the clouds above opened and unleashed a raging storm. Thunder rolled, lightning flashed and rain drenched everyone. Luckily for me, I was no longer the only one soaking to the core; therefore, no one paid me any mind as I hurried down the street. A simple girl trying to get out of the rain. As I turned a corner, I opened the bag on my shoulder and pulled out a pink cardigan.

I scowled at the colour yet pulled it on anyway, allowing it too, to become heavy with rainwater. I thumbed around the pockets until I found it. A small, white container made up of two circular parts. Contact lenses. I slid the lenses in, giving the illusion of boring brown eyes. There. Perfectly human.

I found what I was looking for not long later, a little bed and breakfast by the side of an old diner, and I slipped inside. A little elderly woman with grey curls and an apron wrapped around her waist came up short when she spotted a girl with chattering teeth and dripping water across her foyer rug. Thunder boomed and lightning flashed from the windows, I jumped on purpose and hugged myself.

"My dear!" The woman cried, hurrying forward towards me, concern spread across her wrinkled features. "Oh, got caught up in the storm?"

It took all I had to refrain from rolling my eyes and saying "Well, duh." though instead I sniffled and nodded. "Yeah, I did." I put on a purposely-choked voice. "I need a room for the night, are there any available?" I stepped forward, flashing a forced smile. The bed and breakfast was small; the furniture was typical old, the fabrics made up of floral patterns and pastel colours.

She pursed her lip, "Of course, m'dear. New to town? Don't you have any family to stay with? Friends?" She begun flipping through a book laid across a small table.

I shook my head and pulled out some money, "Afraid not, just passing through. I hope this is enough," It was more than enough. It was perhaps more money she'd seen in a while. She thanked me and told me she'd give me the best room I had. She took my coat and hung it on the rack, then led me towards the stairs.

"What you need is a bath, then to get all snuggled up beneath the covers. You'll catch your death, mind you." She instructed a hand on my lower back. The room she showed me to was tiny, ridiculously small. The bed was made of white wood, the carpet lush and fluffy, the shelves full of old fairytales and local history, the windowsill decorated with small pot figurines. It looked like it had been plucked from a storybook.

I informed the woman, whose name I had already forgotten; that I required rest and she had left me to have just that. The moment she left, I locked the door behind her and let out a heavy sigh of relief. I had needed to play the part of a human on numerous occasions, yet it never got easier. It was infuriating, having to walk slowly and sometimes clumsily, to flex my chest and shoulders to show my breathing, to force expressions onto my face and smile whereas in any other given situation, I would have been glaring with a smile that terrified others.

After taking out the contacts and stripping from my clothes, I showered in the attached bathroom. I had bathed only the night before yet I smelt of ocean and salt, a taste I did not want on my lips. Afterwards, I dried my hair and changed into my beautiful black clothes.

This time, I slid on a boring looking jacket with a hood, lace up ankle boots with a slight heel and I slid in another pair of contacts as the venom in my eyes had already damaged the others. I ensured the door was locked, my bag was hidden away beneath the bed, and then I unlatched the window and ducked out of it, closing it behind me. I had been in the room for an hour now, meaning the storm had died down a little; the rain only a drizzle in the damp air.

I leapt from the ledge and into the forest, darting around the trees to the other side of town. I already checked out the ravine Victoria had escaped through the night before - nothing. Therefore, I decided to check out the place I first spotted her.

The house of the Chief of Police

* * *

The house was empty, the man who had been sprawled out across the sofa the night before was now at work. This gave me an opportunity to look around the house in more depth, without worrying about being quiet. Perhaps I would find reason as to why Victoria's scent had lead me here, for what reason was she drawn to this house in particular.

Again, I slipped through the same open window and into the empty bedroom. The only scent in here was my own, from the night before and the strangely attractive scent of the human man. His blood was sweet. Who knew, perhaps I would feed from him after killing Victoria. Treat myself.

I looked around the bedroom and noticed an old, cracked rocking chair in the corner. A laptop atop the desk. I turned it on yet came up short when it asked for a password. I left it and moved to the other bedroom, mostly full of the man's belongings, yet nothing of particular interest to me. The same went for the bathroom and the kitchen yet as I ghosted through the living room, I saw something.

A photo album on the coffee table that had not been there the night before. My curiosity peaked and I picked it up, running my fingers along the leather bound spine. I opened the book and flipped through the first few pages. They showed the Chief and another woman, with lighter hair to her shoulders, happily in love. Several pages later? A newborn babe in their arms. An infant who grew to have a full head of luscious dark locks such as my own and the darkest, smoothest eyes I had seen in a long time. As the pages went on, the photographs showed the infant growing into a child, year after year looking a little older, a little prettier.

As I went to turn the page and explore the child's teenage years, I heard the sound of footsteps and I dropped the book. I flew to the window and peaked form behind the voile curtains.

She stood in the middle of the road with her head back and her shoulders squared, as if trying to come across powerful and although she was an immortal, I saw her as nothing but a child. Her dark hair was a lighter shade in the daylight, if you could call it daylight. The usual blue of the sky was gone; instead, it was shrouded by an ocean of grey clouds, rumbling in the distance, attacking the town of Forks with pellets of rain. Although it became clear why Carlisle's coven maintained a permanent residence nearby. She wore a structured burgundy jacket, a shade darker than my eyes, atop a white shirt and dark jeans, as well as a pair of beautiful open toed pumps.

I smiled and unlocked the front door, stepping out onto the porch. "Alice." I snarled my lip curling into a smile.

"Isabella." She greeted me calmly,

I flexed my fingers, cracking my knuckles and clenching my hands into fists. "Not exactly the girl I was looking for, but if you insist." I went to take a step but she lifted up her hands in surrender.

"Wait – I don't want to fight. I want to talk. I know you want answers and I do too. " Alice made her way over towards me, her shoulders slacked and she walked with a kind of swagger, composure. "I promise. " Usually, I would have still advanced. She knew I wanted to kill her brother, why should I have trusted her. Something within me made me stand down, yet keep my wits.

"Allow me to formally introduce myself," she hopped forward, hand outstretched with a quirky smile on her face, "My name is Alice Cullen." I did not shake it, instead I moved away from her.

"You foresaw my arrival here this morning. I should have assumed as much." It was a mistake on my part, ignoring the important information Carlisle had given me on his – well, what he called – daughter, Alice, and her gifted ability of precognition. I stepped forward and looked around, taking in the air through my nostrils and tasting it on my tongue. I could taste the rain in the clouds, the dirt beneath my boots, the moss on the tree trunks and...the sweet scent of immortals. Other than my scent, and Alice's, there was Victoria's, as well as Edward's and others I failed to recognize, probably the other Cullen's. Though the scents were faded, no one had been here in hours.

"I did, but I didn't tell the others. I wanted it to be just us girls." I glanced up at the window at the front once more, the lilac curtains. "Do you know him? The man that lives here?" Alice straightened out the wrinkles of her shirt before sitting on the steps to the porch. It would have been easy, to tear her head from her shoulders. From the look in her eyes, she knew the temptation was there – though I decided against it. I looked up the house and shook my head.

"Of course not, why would I know this human?" It was a silly question. Why would I of all people associate myself with a human long enough to know their name? Honestly, the one human I knew by name was Bianca, the receptionist whom worked within the entrance the clock tower. Even then, I had not spoken a word to her in a good three years.

"His name is Charlie. Charlie Swan." She cooed. Alice paused, as if waiting for a reaction of some kind. "He's the Chief of Forks, has been for some time now."

I rolled my eyes, "You are wasting my time, Alice Cullen." I snarled, "I have more important things to attend to than discussing a human sheriff." I headed back towards the garden walkway.

"I just wondered. Why did you come here? To Forks?" She called out, I did not stop though I did turn and walk backwards.

"I am here to kill an immortal by the name of Victoria." I confessed, shrugging. Alice stopped following and turned on me.

"Victoria?" We immortals could hide our emotions perfectly, yet there was no hiding the horror in Alice's voice.

"You know of her?" This, for a reason unknown, came as a surprise to me. How did Alice know Victoria? Through Edward? Then again, how did Edward know of her?

"Yes, I know Victoria. We first met her a few years ago here in Forks; she was passing through with her mate James, and her coven mate, Laurent. We had – at the time – a human girl with us." Alice ran a hand through her hair, brushing it out of her face.

"A human?" I questioned, "A pet?"

"Yes. A human. No, not a pet!" She sounded almost defensive. "She knew of our kind, became Edward's mate. We intended to turn her but Victoria's mate, James, he caught B-this girl's scent. He was a hunter, a skilled one at that and he decided to stop at nothing until he killed her – if only to spite Edward. We managed to save her, destroy James but Victoria vowed to get revenge on us, on Edward, by killing his mate in return.

"She succeeded." It was no question. Edward had no mate, though clearly the kiss proved he'd moved on, or was trying to.

"Um – well, yes. Or so we thought. Ever since, we've been on the hunt for her. It's why Edward interrupted your kill yesterday." "He would never have been able to move on if he wasn't the one to do it. Between you and me, I never saw him moving on anyway, and I think he knew it too."

I had not mated, not felt true love, yet I agreed with Alice. We immortals so rarely felt a shift in the way we felt. It was easy for us to fall in love, yet harder for us to fall out or move on, no matter the cause. To lose your mate sounded like an awful thing. For some reason, Kai's face flashed in my memory, his goofy smile made the corner of my mouth twitch.

"I beg you, Isabella. There is no need for conflict." She sounded so heartfelt, so pained.

"I'll let it slide, this once." I declared, "I understand the reason behind Edward's attack, though this does not mean I am pleased about it. If he – if any of you dare to cross me again – I will not hesitate to burn each of you. As I am sure you are aware, Alice Cullen, the Volturi do not offer second chances."

I turned on the spot and set off running down to the road, to find Alice waiting for me. I came to an abrupt stop a few feet before her, my brows pulled low in questioning. Why was she standing before me once more? "Alice?" I questioned carefully, "I just told you, I need to leave. I need to find Victoria today."

"I'm sorry, Bella. I hope you'll forgive me for what I'm about to do." Then I heard them, footsteps, shifting and movement from the trees around us. It hit me then, the reason I had not heard their arrival was because they had been here all along, hiding in the trees, listening. Betrayal. Run. I set off running but stopped only a second later when several figures emerged from the forest. Carlisle and his coven. They had been listening in this entire time. They were all there, Carlisle and his mate, Esme. Alice's mate, Jasper who looked even more in pain now than he had the night before, and then Edward – he stood as still and as cold as a statue, watching me.

"Nice try," I snarled, turning on the spot but to find my path blocked.

The Golden One's were not alone. This time they were accompanied by another seven immortals! They dropped down out of the trees, emerged from beyond the bushes as if waiting for me all along. The first was a tall man, with black hair to the collar of his dark off green trench coat, and a slight olive cast to his pale skin. By his side there was a skinny woman, her body made up of angles and points, though she was pretty. Her chalky complexion also held a slight olive tint, hinting that as a mortal she too had a darker skin tone than most. Her dark hairs hung in lose ringlets, adorning the curve of her face and the arc of her back.

The next three could have been sisters. Well – three immortals that could have been sisters as mortals though something told me this was unlikely. Each

One with hair as straight as a ruler down to her shoulders, a colour so fair it could have been mistaken as white to one without the heightened sight of immortality. One with hair a darker shade, styled into tight curls halfway down her back, her face was sharp, as were her eyes and her thin nose, her full lips counteracting this pattern. The final girl had straight hair, pulled up into a messily made bun that seemed to suit her anyhow, a more serious look on her face than her sisters did. She looked as if a smile was something she troubled to master.

The next two appeared to me as a mated couple and their fitted one another exemplarily so. The man was taller, towering above me with biceps and triceps larger than my entire head, causing his already large jacket to look tight wrapped around him. His hair was cut into short, black curls; I noted how he had a boyish feel to him, in spite of his age and overly intimidating demeanour. It clashed against the piece of eye candy on his arm. She was slender, with curves in all the right places and angles in all the others. Her figure statuesque, a product of true desire and beauty; even I had to admit, Heidi was less than nothing compared to this beauty, even with her gifted ability. Even I resisted the urge to touch her.

Also, Like Carlisle's Coven, these several vampires shared their strangely hypnotic golden eyes. Twelve Golden Ones altogether.

"Whoa, this is freaky." The muscle man seemed taken aback, staring at me. The golden haired woman by his side shared a mutual expression.

How unsettling for me. "What is this?" I demanded from anyone who would dare to answer me. I spun on the spot, then again; I was surrounded, immortals all around me. Fuck. I was outnumbered, severely so. If this Coven intended on killing me, then they would succeed. It was a certainty.

"Isabella, we need you to come with us." Carlisle tried to persuade me to go with them. He failed.

"Come with you? Why would I follow you?"

"You must, there is much for us to discuss with you. We believe we have discovered something, not only about the Volturi but in regards to you. I promise you, we mean you no harm."

For a moment, I wondered what he meant. The Volturi? Me? It made no sense. It did not need to. "No harm! Tell me, Carlisle, what of this battalion you have assembled against me? An army? Aro will be most displeased." Old friend or not, hell, gifted or not, Aro would see to it personally that the strange, golden eyed Cullen's would burn. I would be the one to light the match. I vowed it.

Also, that is what this was. An army. Were these golden-eyed vampires creating an army of golden-eyed immortals, were they different to us? If so then in what manner? Carlisle had said he wanted to talk, for me to follow them to their home though centuries of facing my enemies had taught me to suspect the worst. Were they planning to use me as a hostage against Aro? Perhaps a bargaining advantage? Sebastian had warned Shelly and Steve had been a part of an army, a larger army. Was this it? Maybe, the Cullen's were working alongside Victoria! Together they were a part of something bigger.

No. Out of all Alice had told me, her hatred for Victoria after she killed Edward's mate was real. I felt it.

"Not an army! Friends, Bella!" The muscular man took a step; the blonde-haired woman grabbed his wrist to hold him at bay. "Family."

"Family?" I laughed. As I said, it was nonsense.

"We are offering you a choice, Isabella. Come with us willing or we will take you by force." Carlisle took an overly confident step in my direction and the others mimicked his move. By force? This actually made me laugh aloud.

"You are a fool, Carlisle, if you believe I am to follow you." I tensed my claws, "You are a fool if you think you will walk away from this act of treason alive."

"It pains me it has come to this." Carlisle shook his head and glanced at his son, Edward.

Edward eyes and mine met again, his thoughts attempting to penetrate my own, to understand me. No one understood me. I flexed my eyebrows at him. A challenge. "Take her."

The twelve of them charged at me.

I ran. I bolted straight for Esme and Carlisle, the two who appeared least likely to behead me, the two who looked like they cared. Esme leaped off the ground and crashed into me, the sound of our impact echoed through the forest, through the sky, like the edge of a cliff breaking away, a boulder being broken in half. I threw her away from me and landed on bended knee, I glanced up to see one of the blonde sisters reaching for me, yet I ducked under her arm and pulled on it as I bounced back to my feet.

As I went to run, someone yanked on my arm and I felt a crack spiral outwards from my wrist. My head snapped in their direction and I swung, my claws gouged down the side of the man with dark hairs face, my nail scraped along his eye. He cried out yet refused to let go. I had momentarily blinded him; this gave me the opportunity to bring my free arm down hard against the crease of his elbow. A high crack hit me as I shattered his elbow, dropping his forearm to the ground.

He ducked low, a heeled foot hit me square in the chest, and I went rolling across the dirt. I twisted and lashed out at Edward who was knelt by my side, hitting him so hard in the throat his neck cracked. I wrapped my fingers tightly around the arm of one of the blonde sisters, dug my fingertips into the marble of her arm and pulled. Her cry outmatched by the metallic screech of her tearing arm, and then it was gone. She fell backwards, scrambling away from me with her teeth bared.

Carlisle appeared before me, trying to hold me still. I bit down hard, tasting the sweet, marble stone of his arm. Alice was there, her hands inside my mouth and forcing my jaw open just in time to stop me from taking Carlisle's hand off.

I shook her free but they were on me all at once, yelling at one another to grab my arm or my leg, their hands pinning me down like cement. Two pairs of arms snatched me up, and then another held my arm behind my back. My knees buckled and I hit the earth, an arm wrapped around my throat and held my head back, stopping me from snapping at anyone else. Another pair of arms grabbed my own, twisting the until it hurt, another two pairs of arms held my legs still, trapped in a statue no matter how hard I thrashed. I could not move, there was too many of them. "You will all burn for this! All of you! I will see to it personally!"

Edward was back, holding my face still and inches from his. "Bella, Bella please, don't fight! Listen, love!" Love? Who did he think he was! I went for their throats, their arms like a rabid, feral beast.

"Jasper!" Alice called and he focussed his attention on me with entirety. Then Jasper was by Edward's side and looking me in the face, his golden eyes almost swirling in the haze caused by the rain. I did not know what Jasper was attempting to do to me, I was unsure on whether or not he would succeed. After a few seconds of thrashing, I wondered _what was the point._ I could feel the muscles in my arms straining under the tremendous weight of the golden ones.

After a moment, I went limp in their arms. My efforts were futile as of that moment. Although it tormented me to admit it, I was nothing compared to twelve other immortals.

I had lost.

* * *

 **FanWriter's Note:**

 **Hello Everyone. I hope you enjoyed chapter 6! I enjoyed this one! Obviously, Rosalie and Emmett return here though not by name, along with all five members of the Denali Coven! Let me know what you think of their capture!**

* * *

 **Responding to your Reviews:**

 _ **SharkSaver23: Thank you. :] I enjoyed that chapter too!**_

 _ **Guest: Perhaps ;)**_

 _ **LG1998: Thanks for your review. First of all, Shia? Sorry, don't know who Shia is. Do you mean Kai? As for you theories, they are very good! Seems my plotting wasn't as smart as I thought!**_

 _ **XXX1994: Thank you :] Both of those are very interesting theories, although neither one is quite there yet. The second one is closer, but not as you believe it.**_

 **~FanWriter Asher~**


	7. Chapter 7

**Isabella's POV:**

* * *

 _I am an embarrassment. Defeated by children. Unworthy of my titles._ These were the thoughts passing through my mind as I succumb to the understanding that I had been captured. I spoke many languages yet no word could completely translate the shame I felt in that moment. I, Isabella of the Volturi, Overseer of the Immortal Guard, the Hand of Aro himself, one of the most powerful immortals to walk the face of the planet, was taken hostage by a handful of golden-eyed children.

Aro would be most disappointed with me. The twelve of them ordered me to my feet, almost dragging me along until I stood upright. The muscular man stood directly behind me, his arms linked with my own and pinning them to my back in a painful way, with enough pressure to crush the hardest substance on Earth. I could feel cracks spiralling out around my shoulders.

The others stood around the two of us, hands still on my shoulders and the back of my neck, keeping me from lashing out at any of them. I let my head fall back, saliva and venom swelling in my mouth as I bared and ground my teeth together in an attempt at keeping myself tame.

"Emmett, be careful." Alice instructed, probably foreseeing the loss of my arms. The man whose name was apparently Emmett, eased up on his pull yet kept his firm grip.

"You're hurting her." Edward complained. It shamed me to admit, even to myself, that he was.

"If I hold back anymore she'll fight free." He snapped back. A moment later, a realization came to me. These immortals did not intend to destroy me - yet. For the moment, they simply wished to hold me captive for whatever reason. They required me alive for something. Hostage, an advantage over Aro? A part of me wondered if Aro would make a bargain with these people in order to keep me alive. Another part of me knew I was fooling myself. I was sure it had to do with my hunting Victoria, and Edward's dead mate, Bella, who shared a name with me. I was not defeated, not yet. I could still escape this, could still refer back to Aro and have him send me several of our men to finish of the Cullen's. I just had to be patient and await the perfect opportunity.

"What do we do with her?" The brown haired woman asked, looking me up and down with questioning. A hint of Spanish heritage in her voice.

"We'll take her back to the house. Go through the forest, we don't want any humans to spot her again." Carlisle nodded to Emmett and he turned me on the spot and ushered me back towards the forest. They walked around me in a tight-knight formation, their eyes on me, not even risking a blink.

"Again?" The blonde mate of Emmett's addressed Carlisle.

"This morning I saw her face through the thoughts of Mike Newton." Edward answered her. He stepped forward and Emmett allowed him to take my other arm. "Mike believed he saw her last night while out with a few of the kids from school. He convinced himself it was just someone who looked like Bella, that he'd been imagining it."

"We got lucky." Alice said, skipping forward. She listened to the others and spoke when spoken too but her eyes were to the sky. "If we didn't succeed in taking Bella this morning, others would have seen her face around town while she searched for Victoria. I saw others recognizing her, calling Charlie and him finding her. It would not have been good for any of us." I realized she was still looking forward into the future, probably my own to see whether I was planning an escape. I looked towards the trees on the right, knowing the border of Forks was only a few miles that way. I had to get out of there.

Alice spun on me, shaking her head. I guess she was still watching. It was not long before we reached a road and crossed over, moving deeper into the woods.

Alice. I wondered again about her ability. We had met others in the past who shared similar abilities to Alice though the Volturi had never met a precognitive immortal as powerful and accurate as she. As they dragged me along and Alice kept an eye on my future, I wondered in what way did her gift work? Did she see the future based on what exactly was destined to happen, or a future based on the choices we made? So many possibilities, either way, though escape would appear to be almost impossible when one has a seer in their midst.

I realized that before I plotted any further, I was in desperate need of knowing _exactly_ what I was dealing with.

First test theory: Alice's visions were based on my choices and decisions.

Therefore, I _decided_ to attack.

"Emmett, look out!" Edward called out first. (Note to self: Edward saw Alice's thoughts, therefore anything she saw, and he did also) In spite of Edward's warning, Emmett was too late. His grip had shifted from my bicep to my wrist, allowing me to twist his arm around and bounce his massive head off Edward's, freeing me from both of my captors. I kicked up off the ground, used the tree for leverage and flipped over the dark haired woman in fur.

I had no plans after this, no plans at all other than to focus on the moment. The moment I hit the ground in front of Alice, I then _decided_ to reach out and wrap my arm around her throat. She was fast vision wise, she saw my decision to reach for her the same second I made it, though where she was fast in that sense, and I was fast in the physical one.

"Stop!" I screeched. The others were already standing still, watching me with wild and scared eyes, and their hands up ready to restrain me. Let them try. I could feel the flawlessly smooth skin beneath my fingers, the bone of her collar. I could take her head before any of them took a step. From the look beyond Edward's golden eyes, he could see it too. Though I had not decided yet what I intended to do.

For arguments sake, I decided that in exactly thirty seconds I would kill Alice Cullen then flee.

"Don't, Isabella, you'll die too." Alice whispered. I tilted my head and arched my brow. We were still, frozen in time. Statues perfectly preserved on the brink of life and death.

"You saw my death? They will kill me if I attempt to escape?" Was there a challenge on my lips? Yes. Twenty seconds, I counted, still content with ending her.

"No. They won't. Some will try but you'll run into the pack before they can finish you. The pack will corner you by the mountain and the Alpha, the one with black fur, will tear you to pieces. You know which wolf I'm talking about, right?" I knew which wolf and I knew exactly how powerful said wolf was. She was telling me this in futile attempt at convincing me to spare her.

Ten seconds.

"Isabella, Please!" Carlisle begged, sharing a mutual horrified expression with the others.

Five seconds.

"Isabella! We do not want to hurt you, but the wolves want nothing more. If you kill me now, you will die too! I promise." Alice and Edward, the two who could still see my future based on the decision I had made, looked confounded at why I was still going through with it. Completely unaware of my other potential choices.

I answered only with a roll of my eyes.

"I do not fear death."

Three.

Two.

One.

It was only on that last second, the last half of that single second that I changed my decision. Up until that moment, I'd every intention of beheading Alice Cullen, throwing her body at her mate, Jasper, and fleeing towards the mountain even though I already knew what fate I would meet there. However, in that split fraction of a second, I decided to spare her.

I slammed my knee into the back of her own, sending her buckling to the ground in front of the others while I turned and bolted left, away from the mountain range. Yet I knew exactly who would meet me. Edward. I ran straight into him. We hit fast and hard, the momentum of my hitting him lifted us both up off the ground and soaring past trees. Edward wrapped his arms tightly around me, pinning me to his chest as we spiralled, hit the ground and uprooted the dirt. Then Emmett's arms were around me, Jasper held my head tightly between his strong hands, the blonde sisters holding my feet.

"Jasper, again." Alice told Jasper. He moved forward and looked me in the eyes. It hit me. Jasper was gifted. I was unsure on precisely what affect his ability had over me, only that it calmed my body. My muscles relaxed the longer he looked into my soul. It mattered not. I did not need to escape yet.

In that split second she saw my decision to spare her, Edward saw the altered vision through her thoughts, therefore he knew my path before I did and was able to be there to grab me in time. That had been a big, big risk. For all I knew, I could have spared her only to meet my ultimate demise in an entirely other fashion. I could have acted too soon, before she could have warned me, and lost my life anyhow. However, I had not.

To them all, especially Alice and Edward, the two I feared the most, I had simply decided to escape one way then changed my mind when Alice told me of my fate though they were clever enough to capture me anyway. Little did they know that I had no true intentions of escaping when I altered my choice, I just needed to test my theories.

At least now, I knew.

A thousand years old, you learn a thing or two about strategies.

* * *

To keep up appearance, I growled and trashed, smashing my head against one of the other sisters as they stepped in front of me. I knew I could not escape yet, but I had to force them to believe I was not as clever as I was.

"Stop fighting, Isabella. Kate here has the power of electrokinesis. She can cause a painful, electric shock like jolt to anyone she touches." The dark haired man mated with the dark haired woman informed me. I spun on the sister he called Kate. The blonde with ruler straight hair and annoy smirk.

"Trust me, Bella; I've been known to put vampires older than you on their ass, begging for mercy." She lifted her hands and rubbed her fingertips together, creating and manipulating small, white sparks out of thin air. "Don't try me." I kept my face expressionless, refusing to give them the satisfaction of knowing I feared Kate's ability. I had not heard of an immortal possessing her ability before, but I was sure my shield would not protect me from enhanced electrocution, not if it was physical pain, that is.

Edward then turned to Esme and smiled a crooked smile, "She doesn't need to know that." He sniggered. Know what? What did I not need to know? Excellent. More secrets I had to uncover.

After a few miles through the misty forest, we emerged from the trees, across the road and they lead me along an unpaved road. It was unmarked; humans would have missed it if they were not purposely looking for it. The tall, dark oaks of the forest encroached on both sides, leaving the road narrow and eerie.

After another few miles, there was some thinning of the woods, and we were suddenly in a small clearing before a large house.

I did not know what I had expected but it definitely was not this. The house was timeless, graceful, three stories, and obviously over a hundred years old yet it was clear by the touched up soft, faded white paint, the restoration of the doors and windows and the overall euphoric nature of the building that the Cullen's took care of this house. Primordial cedars that shaded an entire acre with their vast sweep of branches surrounded the house itself, shrouding the wide land space and providing a sense of privacy.

It was not the house I pictured when discovering the Cullen's maintained a permanent residence here within Forks. Honestly, I had only even heard of a handful of covens deciding to settle down in a singular place permanently. Most covens travelled nomadically as to keep the secret of their eternal youth, others settled down until rumours started to spread about the seemingly ageless strangers. If they became anything more than rumours, the Volturi would step in and handle the situation before suspicion could arise even further.

Like most of our laws, we were the exception. Aro and his Volturi had been living beneath Volterra for a long, long time. We had no plans of leaving anytime soon, either.

I listened carefully to the sound of the breeze through each blade of grass, the river close by to the east hidden in the obscurity of the forest, the dying storm in the distance and the crackling of logs in a fireplace indoors.

"Well, I've got to say; I've seen worse prison cells." I commented as they walked me up the deep porch that wrapped around the first story; Esme stepped forward to open one of the two grand ivory doors. The inside was equally as surprising, less predictable.

From the appearance of exterior and considering the age of the house, I guessed the wide-open concept of the first floor had originally been several rooms before the Cullen's decided to remove the walls. The back, south-facing wall had been entirely replaced with gleaming glass and beyond the shade of the cedars, the lawn stretched bare to the wide river I heard before. The Cullen's seemed to be the exact opposite of the Volturi Guard. Whereas we favoured black, the Cullen's favoured white: the walls, the high-beamed ceiling, the wooden floors, the thick carpets and most of the furniture were all varying shades of white.

"The office." Edward answered someone's unspoken question.

The Cullen's and their golden-eyed friends lead me across the room; pass the massive curving staircase dominating the west side of the room and through a door into what appeared to be a large office space. The walls lined with floor to ceiling bookcases, stacked with tomes of varying sizes, shapes, colours and backgrounds. A large oak desk on which a modern computer was placed, along with several open notepads and from what I could see, medical notes.

One entire wall appeared covered in paintings and pictures. Some of them were old, very old and beautiful as portraits and backgrounds, whereas others were actual photographs, several of which were members of this coven throughout the ages. They really did play the part of a family, huh. There was a chair in the far corner of the room, a lush chair of soft material. They sat me in and for the first time in an hour, I was finally released.

I rotated my shoulders, stretched my neck then sat back with one leg folded over the other. Twelve golden-eyed immortals stood before me in a kind of semi-circle, keeping me the large glass window on opposite sides of the room.

"This is insane. How are we supposed to stop her from attacking us? Fleeing? We cannot stand watch forever?" One of the sisters (the tall one with a square jaw and curled hair) asked the other two.

"That's true," I said. She scowled at me. Apparently, my input was not welcome.

Edward's head then snapped in Jasper's direction. "No!" He snarled through his teeth.

"It was merely a suggestion." Jasper countered. I puckered my lips and raised a brow, an expression of confusion on my features that the others also shared.

"What?" Emmett asked.

Edward looked rather pissed with his brother. "Jasper suggested we tear off Bella's legs," Oh, that was bad.

"She is vampire. They would reattach and heal, Edward."

"I said no!" He raised his voice.

I shook my head. "Yeah, I'm with Edward on this one. I vote to keep my legs."

"Shut up." The pretty fourth blonde-haired woman, the one that was not one of the three sisters, snapped. I turned to her. Rude.

"So...Are you going to tell me why I have been abducted or aren't you?" I demanded. No one spoke. They just looked at one another, everyone's eyes lingering on either Edward or Carlisle. After a few second, I slouched back, enjoying the mindless luxury of a soft chair. "Surely it cannot be because we both desire to end the life of the redhead?" I knew it had to be more than something as stupid as this.

"Redhead?" The Spanish woman turned to Esme.

"Victoria." She explained and the Spanish woman nodded in understanding. It appeared Victoria was a household name.

"So get on with it then, what is it you require of me?"

Carlisle was the first to speak. "We have questions."

"Questions! Is that all! All you had to do was ask! It would have been much easier for all of us." I only half-joked. "Go ahead, ask away. I will answer any of your questions as long as they are not rude, or invasive or personal. We've just met. Although...we are a little past that now I suppose. You tried to kill me; I tried to kill you...actually, what are your names?" I asked, pointing at the ones I did not know. It turned out the beautiful blonde, lucky Emmett's mate, was Rosalie, a name as beautiful as she. The dark haired Spanish couple dressed in leather and furs were Eleazar and Carmen, and the three blondes were their "Daughters" Kate (whom I had already been introduced to upon her threatening me) her sister Tanya was the blonde with the many curls and small features. The third who looked as if she were in a constant state of pain was Irina.

"And, contrary to popular belief." I glared at Edward, "My name is _Isabella_." Edward looked like the word caused a physical blow. Good. "And I do intend on killing you all at some point in the near future."

"Since when did you become a badass bitch?" Emmett laughed. The others scowled at him for it and he scratched the back of his head.

"Who are you?" Edward pushed by his father, getting dangerous close to me. I could have taken his head and I decided to do so. Alice foresaw this, as did Edward. I winked at him. Then decided to spare him. In a way, it was like they were reading my mind yet only saw the thoughts I allowed them to see. I could do such a thing. I had learned many centuries ago to unravel my mind, to strip myself naked and vulnerable to psychic abilities, yet there was no chance of me actually doing such before these golden immortals.

"I told you, Edward Cullen, I am Isabella of the Volturi Guard. I am-"

"No you're not!" He yelled at me, more hurt than angry. "You're not Isabella, you're Bella! Your name is Bella Swan!"

"Bella Swan?" This time my confusion was all too real. It hit me then. It all made sense and I scolded myself for not seeing it sooner. Swan was the surname of the Charlie Swan, the Chief of Police of this town, the reason Alice questioned me on him. Edward believed I was his supposedly deceased mate! He was hunting Victoria because she killed Edward's mate. They were calling me Bella not because they favoured the ugly nickname over my full name, but because it was the name of Edward's human!

"Oh, I get it now." I found myself quite cheerful all of a sudden. I must have looked somewhat like her.

"Get what?" He demanded.

"I'm not your Bella." I answered as sympathetically as I could. Well, I tried to come across sympathetic at least.

"You are Bella." He nodded mostly to himself, but it was as if he were trying to convince me. As if he were waiting for me to suddenly believe him, jump into his arms, and kiss him as he did me the previous night.

"No. I am not. I am a thousand years old, Edward Cullen." I was getting slightly more aggravated. "I am not your pet!" I spat the word.

"Edward, perhaps she is not Bella after all. She is so different?" It was Esme, his mother figure who calmed him down by laying a gentle hand on his shoulder.

I felt for him. The loss of one's mate could result in a sorrow that lasted forevermore. I had seen it with Marcus. In a way, I pitied the bronze haired boy. "I can't read her mind."

"That's not you, that's all me." I told him, shrugging it off as if trying not to brag.

"She's gifted." Eleazar stepped forward and leaned low, taking in every detail of me in an unusual way. "A shield. A mental shield. She is protected from any psychic ability." Hmm. Perhaps he could identify abilities in others. The name Eleazar was not entirely unfamiliar.

"Like Bella?" He hinted.

"Perhaps an ancestor of Bella's who shares very similar features, an ancestor who shared the same ability. You said it yourself, Bella's fathers mind is one you have trouble to read? Perhaps it is passed down." Tanya asked.

"Are you blind?" Edward laughed with no humour. "You've seen the photographs, Tanya, she doesn't have similar features to Bella, she _is_ Bella. Down to the last strand of hair, she is Bella, and she is not an ancestor!"

Suddenly Irina let out a heavy sigh and stormed across the room, pacing with her fists clenched. "It matters not whether she is an ancestor of Bella's! What matters is how foolish we have been! We have given the Volturi the excuse they have been waiting to hear for centuries! We have taken one of their own, one of their leaders; and they will come, they will come and they will burn us all."

"Your sister is not as stupid as she looks." I commented.

"If we kill her now, we have time to flee before word spreads to Aro." Irina reached for me.

"I take that remark back; she is stupider than she looks."

"Irina!" The one they called Tanya shrilled. She snatched Irina's hand in the air and pulled her sister aside. "How could suggest such a thing? Bella is Edward's mate; she is not an enraged newborn we need to destroy."

"I agree with Tanya, except...I am not fucking Bella!" I bounced to my feet, swigging for her golden locks only to be tackled by Edward who pinned me to the wall. Demanding that I calm down. The room burst into a choir yells and arguments, whether I was Bella or not but just, as I wondered whether to bolt for the window, we heard the howls.

The Pack. They were coming.

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 **FanWriter's Note:**

 **Hello, Everyone Chapter 7 is here. A longer one again, thankfully. I try to get a lot of hidden points across in this chapter, and I do try and make Isabella clever as well as dark, sexy and funny. It's harder than it seems. Let me know what you think!**

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 **Responding to your Reviews:**

 _ **Guest: Thank you for your review. We certainly will see Kai again! ;)**_

 _ **Alice: One of those theories is kind of spot on. However, which one? (#secretdoctorwhocrossover!) I'm joking.**_

 _ **SharkSaver23: Thank you for reviewing :D So far, this is all they have done with Bella. Let me know what ya think! :D**_

 _ **Warrof: Thank you! :} I hope to hear what you think of this chapter!**_

 _ **Sullhach: Kai does! That is true. That could have happened (Or, they just couldn't see her face before due to the fact she wore a jacket with a hood and she was running in the opposite direction the majority of the time ;} ) Caius does certainly not like Isabella. It is not hard to see why. Sorry about the spelling mistakes. My spell checker sometimes decides to change words that make sense to others that do not. Weird.**_

 _ **Macey: Thank you so much! Wish I had time to update everyday! Sorry!**_

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 **~FanWriter Asher~**


	8. Chapter 8

**Isabella's POV:**

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"Oh, this is wonderful timing. This is entirely what I desired to happen. My day is getting better and better with each passing minute." I ground my teeth and sat back in the chair, rolling my eyes and scratching my forehead. The canine creatures who had attempted attacking me the night before were on their way, charging through the forest towards the Cullen home, apparently.

I painted a picture in my mind, a beautiful picture of what was sure to come. Of course, the immortals being the superior species would rightly slaughter the werewolf pack with ease, perhaps with amusement and enjoyment too. Of course, this coven may lose a member or two if they were sloppy and careless, and the bite marks would sting for days, though it was far from impossible for the Cullen's to succeed in the massacre and escape without casualties.

"The pack," Edward spoke, "They're on their way here."

"Thank you, Edward, not knowing what those howls were would have kept me up at night." I muttered under my breath. I wondered what would be the worst outcome: death by immortal, werewolf or Idiocy.

"Why are they here, Edward?" Carlisle asked, laying a hand upon his son's shoulder. Edward stared out of the windows, his eyes narrowing on the seemingly quiet forest ahead. It would not be quiet much longer.

"They know we have her, tracked her scent to Charlie's where it was masked by ours. They're demanding we sacrifice her over to them. I don't think they know she's-"

"I swear if you say it-."

"-Bella." He finished. I lashed out but Alice was already stood between us, she twisted my outstretched hand behind my back and shoved me back into the corner. She was small but strong. The others seemingly tried their best to ignore me, though I knew that in the back of their minds I was still their primary focus. I was a stranger, a stranger who wanted them dead. They weren't stupid enough to give me the opportunity.

"How is it possible they don't know?" Esme wondered.

"They only saw her from behind, and because we didn't inform them we'd have visitors they're assuming she's an ally of Victoria's."

"On the contrary, I want to see the redhead burn as much as they do." I smiled though a question crossed my mind; something Edward had said bugged me. _Because we didn't inform them, we'd have visitors._ A rather insane notion struck. Perhaps the golden eyed Cullen's and the Quileute Werewolves were in fact allies. Neighbours here. Peaceful by choice. What a strange little town this was turning out to be.

"Carlisle, we must tell them who she really is." Edward turned to his father and Carlisle nodded back.

"I agree, though we must tread carefully. The wolves may not take to well to this news. I believe it best to speak with them first, explain what we know."

"What do we know?" Rosalie challenged.

"Not much, but we must try." The others moved forward.

"It's okay, I'll just chill here. Promise. Scouts honour." I held up three fingers then waved it off and Emmett chuckled. It seemed he was the only one amused by my sarcasm. Edward scowled.

Carlisle turned to his two other sons, "Emmett, Jasper, would you stay behind and restrain Isabella?"

Emmett and Jasper hauled me up from my seat and across the room, following the others across the Cullen's extravagant home. "Ease up, gentlemen, I'm surrounded by a dozen immortals and werewolves, I'm going nowhere. I'm not that stupid or suicidal." Although if I had to endure much of this "Captivity" much longer, I was certain I'd end up attacking one of them just to provoke another into ending my torment.

Alice glanced back my way and I puckered my lips into a kiss. She rolled her eyes and turned away.

As we passed the grand stairwell, I took notice of what appeared to be a large wooden cross hanging on the wall; it had to be several hundred years of age, not only could I see the fine ancient details but I could also smell the years on it. The Cullen's lead me to their back door, which lead to a set of stone steps into the forest. They opened the glistening glass doors; Alice hoped down the entire flight in a second, her eyes appeared strained for some reason. I wondered if the Seer could foresee the werewolves' futures too.

Edward let out a long breath. "Jacob's with them...he doesn't know." Jacob? Who was this Jacob?

I remained inside, hidden from the view of the others yet I still could clearly see through the large glass window of the sitting area.

I was alone with Jasper and Emmett, the two of them staring out of the window with valiant looks in their eyes, two heroes ready to smash through that window and save their family at any moment. Now I had a chance to get a good look at them, they were in a simple way, hot. I slid my arm through Emmett's as if he were my date and allowed I squeezed his muscles. I winked at him.

He looked down at me, a little weirder out. "Not that kind of guy, huh? Go figure."

Rosalie glanced over her shoulder at us, snarling. "Shut up, Bella." I blew her a kiss too. I'd have one of them eventually.

The others outside stopped talking and turned towards the forest. The wolves were here. In a single line, the wolves bolted from the trees and charged across the lawn towards the Cullen's home. There had to be over a dozen of them, all different sizes, shapes and colours; a multitude of browns, blacks, greys and whites, even a wolf whose fur held a reddish tint.

They got closer, their giant paws uprooting the ground as they charged. Then Carlisle stood forward and the wolves came to a stop. This surprised me. I had already concluded that the werewolves and the Cullen's were allies although to see such a thing in person still bewildered me. The werewolves were powerful, brutally so. There was always the possibility, little as it may be that I misconceived the situation. If it came to blows, I could have seriously underestimated the abilities of the Cullen's and misjudged the strength of the pack.

"Sam," He addressed the Alpha ahead of the wolves by his human name. "It has been some time since we spoke with you last." The Alpha snarled something in response and Carlisle turned and paced back and forth. "We know why you have come and whom you seek, though my family are here not to stop you, which perhaps is what you may have assumed, but to explain to you who it is through those doors."

"They want to know what you mean by that," Edward's smooth voice replied. I realized he was translating for them, clever in a simplistic way.

"What I mean is the vampire you came into contact with last night, the vampire you sought out this morning, is not an ally of Victoria's. In fact, she was sent here to Forks by our royalty, the Volturi, to exterminate Victoria." Several of the wolves exchanged long looks with one another, seemingly communicating entire sentences with one another in mere seconds. I wondered what it would be like, to be one part of a whole mind, a shared mind. I imagined it would be quite amusing in some aspects, being able to hear the thoughts, see the memories and experience the emotions of your pack members. Although, with that gift came the curse; the same was reversed on you.

All of your own thoughts, memories and emotions open to everyone. There were no secrets, not one. I realized it reminded me of Aro and how upon a single touch he knew everything there was to know about you. Every single thought you ever had and everything you had seen he had seen too.

I had never been more grateful for my shield.

"No, she didn't kill her." Edward answered Sam's unspoken question for Carlisle. "Victoria managed to escape."

I scoffed aloud and Jasper's grip on my arm tightened as he moved me away from the window. I guess they didn't want the wolves to hear me either, though it had made me chuckle. Victoria had only escaped due to Edward interrupting my kill!

"We will find her soon," Esme spoke, a smile clear in her voice.

A quiet moment passed before Edward spoke again, "They believe you, but want to know who she is. The Treaty states that we can't be harmed but any other vampires who wonder into Forks is, as Paul puts it, free game. They want to know why we're protecting her."

"We are protecting her because she is no ordinary Volturi Guard neither is she a nomad passing through, she is...something else. Someone else. Please, return to your human form and come inside to meet her." Carlisle tried to influence the wolves with the humble, welcoming voice he used though from the chorus of growls to follow, I assumed it did not work.

"They want us to bring her out." Edward answered.

"Doing so may startle you, we do not want to-" A growl, a demand. Carlisle sighed.

"Very well, though I must warn you. This will come as a shock. Jasper, Emmett?" Carlisle called. Jasper held onto one arm tightly while Emmett held the other.

"Are you insane? I'm not going out there! Those _things_ want me dead!" I whispered low enough for only the immortals to hear. I tried to argue yet the boys dragged me along. I rolled my eyes. I flicked my hair behind my shoulders and gave them an obviously annoyed smile. "Fine." Emmett and Jasper lead me around the corner towards the glass doors and through them onto the lawn; everyone was watching me.

My approach received mixed reactions from the werewolves. Several of them scurried backwards, their already large eyes widening in what I hoped was fear, and others bared their jagged canines and stood their grounds. One of the wolves, the reddish one, seemed to almost whimper and cry out in a yelp before darting forward only to find his path blocked by the Alpha.

That was unusual. It was almost as if the creature...was happy to see me. A moment later, he had large, baseball-sized tears rolling down his face. He moved forward, ignoring the Alpha that snapped at the shag of his neck.

"Jacob! Jacob, stop!" Edward snarled, stepping in front of me. Jacob. This reddish wolf was called Jacob and apparently, he was just as deranged as the Cullen was.

"Calm down, mutt!" Rosalie roared. The wolf shoved away his Alpha, turned on his tail and charged into the woods with a howl. Dramatic much?

"He'll be okay, he's going to phase." Edward told me with a nod. I shrugged and he gave me a second look, as if he almost expected me to care.

"Sam, you know who this is." Carlisle said. The Alpha appeared just as shocked, maybe even terrified, as the others. The Alpha growled in response, his black eyes on me.

"He wants to know how it's possible." Edward said. Edward turned and came to meet us, taking Jaspers spot and half-dragging me across to the others. I noticed how they crowded around me, whether to protect me from the wolves or protect them from me, I was unsure.

"We are unsure at the moment, just as much in the dark as you are, Sam. Although as you can clearly see...Bella's alive." Again, I ground my teeth though by that point I'd concluded arguing with these people was futile. The wolves refused to calm down. I had to confess; never before had I caused such a fuss simply by having this face.

The curses of being an immortal beauty.

The leaves in the trees rustled, the sound of footsteps heading this way. The russet coloured wolf returned, this time in human form. He looked older than the rest of them, into his early twenties at least. He was half-naked, wearing a pair of torn and tattered denim shorts. His body was thick, toned and muscular - similar to that of a serious bodybuilder, his torso seemingly carved into abs, and his silky skin held a coppery glow. His eyes were dark, set deep above the high planes of his cheekbones. His glossy black hair hung by the side of his face, adorning his features. He was hot.

Hmm. I had never fucked a werewolf before.

The first word from his lips? "Bella!"

"You had such potential." I sighed. He went to charge at me again though his pack members shoved him back with their giant heads.

"Jacob, you must calm down." Edward pleaded, his arm across my chest as if to protect me.

Carlisle stepped towards the boy. "It is not what you think. This Bella remember anything. She doesn't remember moving to Forks, mating with Edward, befriending you, Jacob," Carlisle nodded to Jacob. "She doesn't remember James and his coven or when we left, she doesn't know anything."

"Why?" Jacob cried. His eyes lined with silver, his tears streaming down his cheeks and his mouth pulled together. He was trying to stop himself from breaking down. How strange?

"We don't know." It was Alice who answered him, she, unlike Tanya, her sisters and the Spanish couple, did not fear the wolves. She walked forward to Jacob who put a hand on his shoulder. "The Volturi are involved somehow, we're trying to figure this out." He shrugged his shoulder, dropping her arm and turned away entirely to dry his tears and compose himself.

"We have to figure this out, Sam." Jacob pleaded with his Alpha, whom took a second to look me over before he turned to the forest to phase.

The Alpha, who had also resumed human form, was the same height as the one they called Jacob, the one that could not take his eyes off me. Not that anyone could reprimand him. Jacob had a boyish claim, whereas the Alpha (Sam, I recalled) had harsh features. His mouth pulled into a fine line, his bushy brows pulled low to express his uncomforted feeling.

"Very well." His voice was surprisingly deep. "We will join you." He then turned and whispered into the ear of the wolf I assumed to be his Beta. Then he met with Jacob and the two turned to follow us.

"Great." I sighed as they lead me back towards the house. Jacob caught up with me and grabbed me by the wrist, spinning me to face him.

"Jacob!" Edward yelled but he was too late. Jacob had me in his arms. He hoisted me into the air, his giant muscular arms wrapped around my small torso entirely with enough strength to break the spine of a human. He pressed his head into my chest, crying like a baby! His tears soaked my shirt, he shook with fear and refused to let go when the others tried to pull him off.

In that moment I felt something strange, a part of me wanted to wrap my arms around him too. In a single second, I wondered why? Why had that action been the first to cross my mind? Was in my lust filled curiosity that caused me to refrain from slaughtering the creature for daring to lay a hand upon me without my saying so? On the other hand, was it some instinct trying to warn me that murdering this boy would result in a battle with the remaining - and still watching - wolves?

Alternatively, was it something else?

It mattered not.

I was getting a little tired of complete strangers displaying their affection towards me physically without permission. Therefore, given this opportunity, I wrapped my arm around his throat and squeezed.

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Asher's Note:

Hello everyone, sorry for the wait but here is chapter 8. In this chapter, Isabella witnessed the alliance between The Cullen's and the Pack first hand. She also met Jacob Black for the first time, please let me know what you thought of his reaction to her. It may have seemed a little much thought when I thought of Jacob discovering Bella was in fact alive, I imagined him breaking down a little.

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Responding to your reviews:

LRJ: Thank you; here is the next chapter :}

Alice: Thank you for your review, it may seem a little simple the plot now, predictable I guess though I hope you still enjoy the story and how it all plays out!

Lanabelle: Thank you, so sweet :]

Kristie: Thank you, that's nice :] I wish I could update every single day though unfortunately the terrors of real life stop me from doing that. I will try to update soon though!

Warrof: Thank you :] I hope you enjoy the direction I decide to take!

Macey 1# : There were two Macey's who reviewed this chapter, this is the respond to the first Macey. Thank you for a lovely review. Maybe soon you will get your wish!

Macey 2#: Thank you for your review! As for the imprint thing, I don't know whether or not that would work for this story though Edward and Jacob certainly will argue! When do they ever not argue? ha-ha

SharkSaver23: Thank you, Badass Bella is my fave.

IMB1: Thank you :] Forks certainly is familiar to Isabella, this will be expanded upon in later chapters. I hope to read more of your reviews!

~Asher~


	9. Chapter 9

**Isabella's POV:**

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I spun as to keep Jacob in front of me; he was taller than I was yet I did not allow this to stop me from wrapping a hand around his throat. The Cullen's leapt forward at the same moment as the Alpha, Samuel. The members of the werewolf pack edged closer, their lips pulled back to reveal their sharp, jagged teeth, deep growls met me, reverberating through the dirt; I could feel it in my toes.

They all watched me with an intense worry, and worry they should. I held the life of their dear friend in my hands, after all.

"Stop. Every one of you." I snarled, my nails digging into the warm flesh of his throat. "Half of a second. That is all it would take for me to end this boy." I knew that murdering the boy would presumably result in my own termination. It was conceivable that Edward would attempt to be the valiant, love-struck hero who would lay down his own eternal life if it meant protecting me against the others.

I could hear Jacob's body react in response to my exertion. His heart rate, strong as it already was, picked up the tighter I squeezed. Sweat covered his creased brow; it dampened the pits of his shirt. He smelt...of boy and this, for an unknown reason, attracted me. His lungs, deprived of oxygen, must have started to burn and ache by now. Unlike us immortals, the werewolves still suffered through such annoying afflictions such as the need to eat, sleep, and breathe. The average human could last four-to-five minutes at most without air; did the same statistics apply to the beasts before me?

In spite of my ever-growing curiosity surrounding the shifters, I would have to refrain from experimenting for the time being. I did not imagine them taking it to well upon discovering I had killed their friends out of mindless wonder. A moment later, someone finally spoke. It was Alice, of course. "Stand down." This command was not directed at me, but at the others. Edward also seemed to relax, his fists now loose.

I knew the reasoning behind Alice's words. She had already foreseen that I did not intend to kill Jacob. Not anytime soon that was. "Foreseeing my decisions does not mean that they are set in stone, sweet Alice." I toyed. Jacob's lack of oxygen was causing him to shake yet he feared fighting free could tempt me to kill him.

"I know," she responded highly, the aggravation coming across strong. "I'm not testing you; I understand your decision. You and I both know the outcome. I'm just telling the others." Freeing Jacob was the only possible way to walk away from this unharmed, I knew this. Although I had no true intentions of killing the wolf anyhow, his slight obsession with me was mildly amusing, though nevertheless, I still found myself annoyed.

"I am not going to kill him, listen to me-," I teased, stretching out the words. Jacob begun to wriggle. "I will not run, I will not fight. I will listen to what you have to say. You said you had questions, so I will try to answer them, on one condition, that is." I added. "You address me by my name: Isabella. You will not address me as her either, when you speak of this Bella, you will speak of her as another, not as I." I focused solely on Edward as I said this.

"Agreed, we can agree to this." Esme pleaded, her eyes not on me but on Jacob, as if she too worried for his safety. The wolves I could understand but did these immortals truly see these creatures as equals. The others nodded along with her.

"And you-" I lifted Jacob a little higher off the ground, "- If you touch me again, pup, I'll tear off your arm, then your legs and then I'll have a look and see what other fun things there are to tear off, and I know your kind do not heal from those kind of injuries." He nodded.

I dropped him.

He collapsed straight to the ground, his knees refusing to comply. He gasped for air, taking in long, deep breaths, his heartbeat calming down.

"Thank you." Carlisle said to me and I rolled my eyes, stepping over the fallen wolf boy as I headed into the house. Sam grabbed Jacob by the arm and hauled his brother to his feet.

I would stay true to my word. I found myself honestly curious of the story of this infamous Bella Swan.

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The room was for the most part silent.

The only sound was the rhythmic beating of Jacob and Samuel's hearts, Sam's a quarter of a second behind. Of course, I could still hear the remaining members of the werewolf pack outdoors, lingering by the forest on the opposite side of the wall of glass. The ruffle of their fur alongside the rustle of the leaves, the sway of the wind and the engines of cars from the highway a mile away.

Besides this, everyone indoors was quiet. We did not return to the office space, the room they had chosen as the most suitable to keep me contained. Now the sixteen of us sat about the living space. I preferred the living space to the office; I had always favoured the open-layout design, 'tis why I chose the highest tower in Volterra for my chambers all those centuries ago. Not only was the tower spacious and wide, almost one entire wall was made up of the balcony, overseeing the rolling emerald hills and purplish sky of Tuscany's sunset.

I folded one leg over the other, running a hand over the smooth fabric of my jeans, waiting. "Black really is my colour." No one replied. I sighed. "Will one of you say something? You were squabbling like children until I agreed to listen, now I'm all ears none f you wish to speak?"

"I'm wondering where to begin." Carlisle finally spoke. He and Esme sat across from me on one of the three sofas; he sat with his arm over her shoulder as if to embrace her though I could tell with the positioning of his body and his legs that he was ready to throw himself before her at a single seconds notice. "There is so much to discuss, so many questions left unanswered."

"She isn't Bella," Jacob said, folding his arms and glaring at me as if he wanted nothing more than to lunge across the room and tear me apart. Clearly, someone was having mood swings. "Why don't we tell her who she is?" he suggested.

"What? Explain it all? The past four years?" Rosalie questioned from her spot across the room, standing atop the steps leading to the sitting area with Emmett directly behind her, his arms wrapped around her waist.

"I think explaining everything to Isabella is exactly the right thing to do, it'll be like a history lesson." Alice chimed from atop the pianoforte, sitting with her legs crossed like a schoolchild; she was in a much cheerier mood than before.

"It would be beneficial for us too; we know only the important details." Said Carmen. She shared one of the other sofas with two of the three blonde girls, Tanya and Kate. Eleazar stood over them watching whilst Irina had taken up one of the armchairs on the entirely opposite side of the room. I had wondered why at first though the answer became apparent to me one Jacob, Sam and Edward sat on the third sofa next to them. Irina, for whatever reason, loathed the werewolves when the others trusted them.

I wondered what the pack had done to deserve such harsh treatment.

"Very well, where should we begin?" Carlisle asked himself, though his eyes met Edward's and Edward nodded. Of course, it would all begin with Edward.

"Isabella Swan lived in Phoenix, Arizona with her mother and step-father, her father lives here in Forks. Chief Charlie Swan." he begun, "Phil, Bella's stepfather is a minor league baseball player, his having to move around a lot made Bella's mother, Renee, unhappy so Bella decided to move in with her dad so her mother could travel." I was on board so far, pretty simple stuff. Boring, yet I decided to stay silent.

"So Bella moved here, to Forks," Jacob continued on, "She came to Forks, moved in with Charlie, went to school, became my best friend and was going to have an ordinary, boring human life. Until-"

"Until she met us." Alice cut in, "Well - until she met Edward." At this, the bronze haired stud rolled his eyes and forced back a smile. "Unlike with every other girl at school, Edward took notice of Bella."

"He didn't take notice of her," Rosalie cut in, folding her arms; she crossed the room to sit on the free armchair. Emmett followed and sat on the arm rest. "He became obsessed with her, if you ask me. He was reckless, stupid."

"How so?" It was not unusual for our kind to come across a human that peeked our curiosity.

"Bella was his Singer." Carlisle answered.

"You tried to mate with your Singer? It sounds to me, Eddy-boy that you were asking for trouble."

Edward chuckled at this and his smile made me smile.

"I suppose to others it certainly sounds that way. I did not intend to mate with her, it just happened. At first, she was a stranger to me. Just another pretty human face among the masses. Though the moment I caught her scent I knew I needed her in my life one way or another."

"How could you stand it?" Tanya asked as she sat forward, "Being so close to her?"

"It was not without great difficulty, I assure you. Refraining from...killing her-" The words he spoke hurt him, it was clear, "-I relapsed and plotted the hunt for hours on end, yet somehow I found the strength to restrain myself. My family helped me there."

The other Cullen's looked proud and I understood as to why. To refrain from killing a human was an exceeding strenuous challenge; to refrain from killing the one human you were to ever come across whose blood sung to you, to your soul - if we had them, that is - seemed undeniably, and senselessly stupid.

"It wasn't just that she was his singer...something else drew Edward to Bella." Emmett added, "He couldn't read her mind either."

"Really?" This was strange; I had to admit that though I still believed it to be coincidence, Bella sharing a same name and ability as I was unusual.

"I knew the sensible thing was to stay away from her, ignore her completely yet I could not. I found myself speaking with her, asking questions, getting to know her. I was -"

"You were falling in love." Esme countered with a humble smile.

I let out a loud groan, slacking my shoulders and drooping my head. "Could this story get any cheesier?"

"Shut up and listen, will you?" Alice's high voice snapped without anger.

"Sorry, go on." I beckoned to Edward.

"She figured out what I was, what we were, and she was fine with it. If anything, it intrigued her." It would appear my sarcasm did not come across clear, or it did and they chose to ignore it. "Everything was fine...until James."

"James?"

"He was Victoria's mate, the leader of their coven. The two of them and Laurent."

Irina stiffened, I glanced her way awaiting her to say something yet she looked away, silent and still.

"They had been hunting in the local area, and after hearing us playing baseball one evening, they approached us, Bella was there." This did not sound, not for Bella at least.

"James was a tracker, a hunter. Once he spotted Bella, once he took notice of how protective I was over her, he decided that he would stop at nothing until he took her life."

"And did he?" I wondered if this was how the girl died.

"No, we managed to get Bella away in time, to safety back in Phoenix though he was smart, cunning." Alice said with a regretful look. "He managed to trick Jasper and I, convince Bella to hand herself over to him to safe her mother whom he had apparently taken hostage. This turned out to be a lie. Bella's mother was safe whereas she was trapped with him."

"I got there too late, he- he didn't kill her but he bit her. My family got there shortly and tore him apart, but Bella was already going through the transformation, we were running out of time. I had to suck the venom-"

"Bullshit." I blurted out. "That is absolute bullshit."

Edward - in fact, they all - looked a little taken back at my language. "It's true, I witnessed it myself." Carlisle said.

"You mean to tell me you had enough self control to suck the venom, not from any human, but from your singer?"

"I understand how impossible it sounds, yet I managed it. It almost destroyed me, and for a moment I contemplated giving in, yet I found the strength to safe her."

"I don't believe it." I knew my response was annoying him and so save myself the petty arguing, I added, "But let's say for arguments sake that you did manage to suck the venom out of your singer, then what?"

"Things were okay, for a while. We went back to trying to have an ordinary life, whatever ordinary meant for us. Until-"

Jacob cut in. "Then when he broke your heart and left you, that's when we got close." I attempted to ignore the fact that Jacob had spoken as if I were his Bella.

I already knew that they seemed to believe I was she, although the others had listened when I asked them not to speak of me as her, that whoever this Isabella was and no matter how similar we appeared to them, that I was indeed not Bella Swan. I was Isabella of the Volturi Guard and they had respected that by not speaking to me as they would to Bella. Jacob, for some reason, believed himself the exception to this demand.

From the look I gave him, he understood his mistake and bowed his head in apology. "When he left her, when he broke _her_ heart. That was when _she_ and I got close." He corrected his sentence.

I turned, glancing sideways at Edward. "You left her?" I almost laughed. "Clearly she was no mate of yours if you abandoned her."

"I did not abandon her!" He growled in response, and then he sighed, his voice much gentler as he said. "I- did abandon her, but it was for her own good."

"It was my fault." Jasper spoke for the first time in a long while. "On the night of Bella's eighteenth birthday she cut her finger opening a present. I had not hunted in some time and the exposure of fresh blood rendered me...unstable. I attacked." Only now did I detect the southern accent this man had.

"It wasn't your fault." Alice hopped down from the pianoforte and skipped over to him; she lay a hand on his shoulder and rested her head there. "Jasper did not hurt her, we took him outside and he managed to regain his control. He did well." We all could tell from the way Alice spoke that she was saying this to reassure Jasper, no matter how long ago this incident occurred, that she and the others did not blame, nor judge, him.

We all knew what it was like to lose yourself to the monster within, although it appeared I was the only one who had welcomed that monster on occasion and made that monster my bitch.

"I decided that my world was too dangerous for her. I would not allow her to get hurt again. So we left Forks."

"She just let you go?" I asked, wondering if Bella's love for him was real.

"Not at first. I- I" Whatever he was about to confess had to be good if it had him this riled up. "I told her I did not love her and that I had come to my senses and realized I did not want to spend an eternity with her." The words were hot on his lips.

I laughed. "Really? You convinced her you didn't love her? And she believed you? God, what an idiot. It's obvious to anyone that you loved this Bella. Your devotion to her, in spite of her death, is somewhat annoyingly admirable."

I didn't exactly mean it to be a compliment yet he smiled.

"Edward?" Carlisle spoke his son's name. I turned back to Edward who was on his feet with a puzzled but almost ecstatic look on his face. He grabbed his coat and headed for the door. "Edward?"

"I'll be back soon. I have an idea." He said, and then he was gone. It felt strange, without Edward by my side, guarding me. Of course, the others were there but if he trusted me enough with his family then it had to mean they trusted me to some extent. I wondered where he was going, what brilliant idea had sprung to mind yet I knew following him wasn't an option. I sat back and listened.

"Do go on." I beckoned to the wolf boy.

"Uh. Okay. When they left, Bella basically died." Jacob said. "She got depressed, spent months barely speaking, eating, moving. She woke every night screaming with nightmares, according to Charlie. He was going to send her away to live with her mom until she and I started spending time together. We'd been friends before but now, without you _bloodsuckers_ in the way, we got real close. We fixed cars together, went to see movies; we went on long drives and walks on the beach, all sorts of cheesy romantic stuff. Why? Because she loved me. Bella fell in love with me."

"That's debatable." Rosalie murmured and I found myself giggling.

"Oh! A love triangle! Such a boring, tragic cliché!" I thrilled. Jacob's eyes were latched onto my own. I shrugged, wondering why he was staring. If he tried to hug me again I would be true to my word and tear off whatever I could grab.

He rolled his eyes, "Say what you want, alright. It doesn't matter. Bella and I loved each other. And hell, someone had to keep her safe."

"Keep her safe?" I questioned.

"From Victoria. She vowed revenge for what we did to James." Alice added,

"She decided that because she had lost her mate, then it was only right that Edward lose his." Rose continued, "She dedicated her life then to finding Bella and killing her."

"And did she?"

"No, I- I don't know." She answered in all truth. I frowned, awaiting an explanation I was not going to receive. So many people wanting to kill Bella yet none had succeeded. I wondered who finally managed such a seemingly troublesome task.

"She tried many times. For months she tried to sneak passed us into our lands unnoticed." Sam's voice was the deepest; it surprised me how masculine it was. He had been quiet until now, listening to Jacob and the others bicker back and forth. I figured it was due to how uncomfortable he had to be surrounded by a dozen immortals whilst in human form.

"Jacob had only recently joined our pack, he was the one to speak with Bella and discover why the redhead was entering our lands."

"You only recently became a werewolf?" I asked, "Bella knew this?"

"Not at first, but she was stubborn, she figured it out." He smirked at the memory.

"What are you, exactly?" I asked Sam directly. "You are not the Children of the Moon, those I have heard tales off and seen sketches. You are different."

"We're not werewolves." He said the word as if it tasted sour on his tongue. "We are shifters. Our ancestors were Great Spirit warriors of the Quileute Tribe. Our Chief, Taha Aki and many others had the ability to leave their physical bodies and fly free in the spirit world. Though an enemy of Taha Aki's who shared this ability managed to steal his body whilst it was empty. To try to convince our people that the man standing before them was not who he appeared to be, Taha Aki came up with a plan. He summoned the Great Wolf Spirit for help, he figured that the wolf had a body and therefore a soul, so he asked the Great wolf that he would make room in his body for his spirit and share the physical form. Granting his request, Taha Aki managed to enter the wolf's body. He returned to his village to stop his old enemy, Utlapa. His warriors realized that the wolf was no ordinary animal and realized whom it was within. He and the other spirit warriors destroyed Utlapa and from that day on, he was able to share the body of the wolf whenever he wished."

Jacob looked at the pack through the windows, "He passed the ability down to his sons, and they passed it down to theirs and so on until today."

"Well, what a story that was." I said, "It sounds like utter fiction to me but I guess you're proof."

Sam bolted upright, his hands balled into fists. I was already on my feet, daring him with my eyes and my smile to make and move and lose his already pathetic life. "Who are you to disrespect our histories and our ancestors? A demon. That is what you are. A demon in the body of a poor girl." Sam was shaking, vibrating violently. Steam rose from his coppery skin.

"Sam!" Jacob gabbed his Alpha and pulled him towards the doors, muttering something about control.

"That was unnecessary. You know what he said is true." Carlisle looked at me with misplaced disappointment.

"I believe it. But it's fun to toy with them." I sat back down. Sam stayed outside whilst Jacob returned.

"He needs a minute, he's finding this very difficult to handle." He explained to Carlisle and Carlisle nodded.

"No explanation needed, we all understand his confusion and anger. We feel it too." Was that a poke in my side, Carlisle Cullen? I tried to keep my amusement hidden. Could you blame me for having a little fun?

"So the shifters kept Bella safe and tried to kill Victoria, but they failed?"

"They did, though whilst we were chasing her, another one of your kind snuck through our borders."

"Laurent?" I guessed. I had been wondering what happened to the third member of James' coven. My question sparked anger from Irina, who clenched the side of the chair she sat in so tightly she tore holes into the fabric and cracked the wooden frame.

"He came back and tried to kill Bella, so we killed him." Jacob sniggered, his eyes on Sam who watched through the window as if his Alpha were going to join in with his laughter and take pride in their kill. "Wasn't too difficult, not very strong for a leech."

"Jacob." Tanya warned yet it was too late.

Irina moved. We immortals in the room were fast, very fast yet we were still too late. She slammed into Jacob with a snarl, snapping at his throat like some feral beast. Within seconds, everyone was on her, screaming her name and trying to pull her free. I watched Jasper's eyes narrow, presumably attempting to use his empathic ability to calm the enraged woman. It did not work. Nothing did, not until her sister, Kate grabbed her by the arm and I watched as the electric current ran course through the girl's body and Irina dropped to the ground, wailing in pain.

In this moment, I discovered that my fear of Kate's ability was misplaced. Her ability, as she clearly displayed seconds ago, was primarily a mental ability. Much like Jane's. If it had been physical, there would be scorch marks across the woman's flawless skin yet there was not. This meant that her threats had been lies. She could not harm me. This must have been what Edward and Esme were discussing in thought earlier that day.

Tanya and Emmett lifted Irina beneath their arms and hauled her away. She already was stable, on her feet and thrashing in their arms. "Let me go! I'll kill them!" Samuel returned to the room and exploded into a giant ball of black fur, then suddenly the giant wolf was across the room in a single stride yet Esme was there with Alice and Carlisle, standing before the wolf and the blonde girl, trying to convince him to stand down.

"Irina! Irina, please!" Carmen pleaded with her daughter yet Irina ignored her, pulled free from the others although instead of charging back at Jacob, she bolted out of the door and into the forest, gone.

In addition, during all of this, I just sat with my legs crossed and a smile on my face. "Well, that was fun!"

"Shut up!" Rosalie roared in my direction, "You pretentious little bitch." I lay a hand on my collar, my eyes wide as I mouthed the word _me!_ In mock astonishment. I knew I was a bitch. In less than ten minutes I'd angered them all, insulted the Shifters spirit warrior ancestors and sparked a fire beneath Irina, letting her loose.

"Can everyone just please, calm down?" Carlisle stood in the middle of us all, his hands up, pleading, begging. "Isabella, you agreed to listen and to answer our questions, not aggravate and stir tension where it is not needed. Please, I ask of you to just listen and be quiet." He was clearly annoyed with me, and it became apparent I had upset him. It made me almost feel something for him. Almost.

Yet I nodded, "I suppose." I would not go as far as to apologise to them.

"Thank you, Sam, please, sit and calm yourself." Sam looked enraged, just as Jacob did at almost losing his life to Irina, yet the two of them took their seats.

"I'll check on her." Kate rose from hers and she followed Irina's scent into the forest. Carlisle, with a sigh, took his seat besides his wife.

"What's her deal?" I asked, nodding to the door Irina had left through.

"After what happened with James, Laurent visited us in Denali." Carmen explained, "He befriended Irina, the two mated. He decided to give our vegetarian lifestyle a try."

This surprised me. I had not expected that. Though something she said confused me. "Vegetarian lifestyle?" I asked. Was it some bad joke I had not grasped the concept of?

Carmen glanced at Carlisle who was staring at me. "You do not know?" He asked,

"I have no idea."

"We do not feed off humans, we drink the blood of animals to survive. It is why our eyes are golden and not red."

It took me a few seconds but I stared with my mouth wide open,

"You have not heard of this before? Surely you must have...in...All of your years." I forgave him for his questionable tone when mentioning my years, as if he questioned their existence. Instead, I focused only on what they were telling me. Their golden eyes were the result of feeding from animals?

"I have never heard of such a thing, ever!" I took note of how loud I was, how excited I sounded yet I did not care.

The idea excited me because I had not heard of it before, I did not believe it possible for our kind to survive on anything but the sweet, nourishing blood of humans yet before me sat actual proof. It excited me, not because I was tempted to try such an outrageous, ridiculous idea, but because it was something new. I wondered if Aro knew. I suddenly found myself itching to tell him, Kai too.

A small part of me wondered what would have happened if this knowledge had greeted me earlier in my second life, would the tiniest shred of humanity left within me have wanted to give that lifestyle a go. Was it possible?

Probably not.

"I see," I said, "Forgive me; this is not something I have come across before. It stunned me, is all." I tucked my long, dark hair behind my ears and tried to maintain a position of formality.

Carlisle and the others tried to hide their amusement at my reaction and I suddenly felt embarrassed. If my cheeks could colour, they would be burning red. "Laurent?" I asked Carmen and Eleazar, trying to avert the attention away from myself for the first time in history.

"Yes, Irina holds a grudge, not only against the wolves but Bella also. She believes that she would have been happy if not for the wolves killing Laurent."

"I thought he attempted to kill Bella? Correct me if I am mistaken, Carmen, though that certain does not sound like he is maintaining your lifestyle?"

"It wasn't. He gave in to his urges and it lost him his life." Tanya shrugged, "We explained this to my sister yet she refused to accept it. She will never forgive the creatures for what they have done."

"Her forgiveness isn't something we want." Jake reached down and picked up his glass of water and took a sip. He passed it to Sam who finished it off. He glanced at me and I offered him a smile he did not return. It would appear I had offended him deeply.

"So what then?" I pondered. It had been over an hour since I had been brought to the Cullen home and as much as I wanted to know about the girl they believed I was, I had a mission to accomplish and a home to return to.

Alice continued the story, "Bella started doing reckless things, riding motorcycles, even cliff jumping recreationally," she added. I knew of Cliff Jumping. In my younger years whilst discovering the extent of my new body's abilities, several of the newer Volturi Guard's took me out one night to engage in such activities. We leapt over the farthest of ravines, swam into the deepest depths of the ocean, punched out way through solid stone and of course, jumped off the tallest of mountains.

"I saw Bella leap from the cliff's edge. However, I did not see her resurface from the water. Due to this, I believed the harsh waves had pulled her under, she'd drowned, and so I packed a bag and booked the next flight to Seattle. By the time I arrived in forks, I discovered that Bella was alive and well."

"Why was it you failed to see her resurface?"

"That's be me," Jacob gave a little wave, "I pulled Bella out of the water, took her home, kept her warm."

It clicked. I turned to Alice, "You cannot see past the Shifters? They block out your visions?" She nodded to me. This was good news. Perhaps it would come into play later.

"Unfortunately, I demanded to know why Alice was returning to Forks and she told me." Rosalie said, "Unbeknownst to me, Edward had returned to our home at the time for a visit with Esme and he read my thoughts. He believed Bella to be dead."

"Believing his mate lost, he decided to approach the Volturi." Carlisle said, "He did not want to exist in a world where she did not, so he decided to plead with Aro to destroy him."

I imagined the bronze haired Edward in my throne room, on his knees, weeping like a child and begging my merciful master to end his misery. "That sounds correct. If you wish to die then the Volturi is certainly the place to go. Although with a Gift as powerful and valuable as Edward's I would have been surprised if Aro agreed to it."

"He didn't. He confronted them, pleaded with them yet they refused him. Aro offered him a place among them if he were unhappy with us but this wasn't what Edward wanted." Carlisle continued.

"That sounds like Aro." I chuckled, "On what day did this meeting take place?" Surely, I would have remembered a bronze haired, golden-eyed vampire come to my home, begging my master for death.

"St Marcus day. Two years ago."

I shook my head. "That cannot be correct." I love St Marcus Day. Had done since my first one. The entire city full of fresh new visitors and tourists, everyone dressed in red. I adored the ambiance, the music, the dancing...The blood. "I have been present in Volterra for the past thirteen St Marcus Day's. I would have been there at the time."

"Well, let's agree to disagree on this one. I had a vision of Edward going to the Volturi, I told Bella so she and I raced to Volterra to stop Edward. He decided to make a spectacle of himself in front of the humans to leave Aro with no choice but to kill him. We managed to get there just in time and Bella saved him but Aro heard of our arrival. He demanded to meet Bella."

A human whom shared my ability, no wonder Aro would have wanted to meet her, if this meeting actually took place.

"He met Bella and was intrigued by her gift, he even had Jane attempt to use her ability on Bella to witness whether or not she was immune to us all."

Strange. A memory flashed to the front of my mind, a memory from almost a thousand years ago. Standing in that same throne room, in blood stained rags and dregs, as Aro went through his children and asked them to use their Gift, determining which of his children had an advantage over me. Jane and her equally as pesky brother, Alec, were both infuriated to discover I was impervious to them.

"He was going to have Felix kill Bella for knowing too much." Hearing her speak the name of one of my men surprised me, it was as if the real world and this nightmare world were clashing together. "Until I showed him a vision of Bella becoming one of us. He allowed us to leave and we all returned to Forks."

"Okay, then what? Can someone please tell me who eventually killed this Bella?" I realized how disrespectful this was. I did not care. Almost two hours since the Cullen's had apprehended me. Wasting precious time.

"Everyone was fine, for about a week. But somehow...Victoria slipped by unnoticed."

"Unnoticed? How is that possible, you have an army of werewolves at your disposal, not to mention you are a seer and Edward can read minds?"

"That's the thing. She slipped by the wolves border without them detecting, she made her way through town without leaving her scent, she even followed Bella and Edward all the way to their meadow in the forest without Edward reading her mind. I had not seen her either. Then, when he had his back turned for a single second..." She did not continue the story, nor did she need to. The room went silent, still again, in memory of Bella Swan.

Carlisle rose from his seat and crossed the room to the window, staring out in the same direction Edward had vanished. "Edward chased down Victoria nonstop for an entire month. Constantly running, he wore the soles of his shoes out within hours. It was only when his exhaustion and lack of blood caused him to slow down that he allowed Victoria to flee and he returned home. By this time, we had already faked Bella's death. We took her body and her truck and made it look like a terrible, terrible accident. Her family had already buried Bella by the time Edward returned."

"He wasn't the same after that." Esme continued, standing by her husband, holding his hand, her eyes on me, a look of sadness within them. "He was empty, lifeless. He stopped speaking for the longest time. Alice had already foreseen Edward's decision to end his own life."

"He decided he'd do whatever it took." Alice added, "He'd make a spectacle of himself again, he'd expose himself in the sun, slaughter a dozen humans if he had to. He even pondered the idea of killing one of the wolves to break our treaty with them and have the pack kill him sooner." The Cullen's were the ones who looked torn by the words Alice spoke. They looked honestly and truthfully disheartened.

We immortals could feel emotion, true that the older we were the less we cared and felt, yet we could still remember how to feel. In spite of the fact I cared very little for anyone but myself, I did feel somewhat sorry for the Cullen Coven, for Edward.

"He was going to die, we all knew this, knew there was nothing we could do." Esme said. "Though first he was going to exact revenge on Victoria, and we were going to help him. Bella was his mate, she was our family too."

"So," Alice said, "For the past two years we've been away from Forks, hunting Victoria across the world, city to city, continent to continent. Eventually, Victoria returned here, to Forks, and we don't know why."

"It was stupid to return here, she forget that if you weren't going to kill her, we were?" Jacob sniggered though their wear tears running down his cheeks. Only now did I realize exactly how much he cared for Bella.

"We don't know why she returned to Forks, but she did, and we followed her." Jasper said.

"We were in Forks only one day before you showed up." Emmett said, "Got to say, one hell of a shock to see you standing there."

"And you know the rest." Carlisle fixed on me.

I was so confused.

"Someone must have re-written your memories, our memories." Carlisle said, "It is the only explanation as to how this could be possible."

"I am not the same Bella." Of course, I knew that I was not Bella Swan. I maybe looked similar to her, strikingly so according to the Cullen's and the shifters, yet I was not her. I had a thousand years worth of memories stored in the back of my mind. Memories of discovery, knowledge, joy, beauty, power, blood, death, friendship, loyalty, family and, above all, life!

"That is not possible, is it, Carlisle." Tanya said, her mouth pulled up into a twisted smile that showed her confusion.

"Tanya is correct." Eleazar stood and strode over casually, staring at me intensely, reading me. "Isabella is a shield, the strongest I have ever detected." Detected? "I can identify the gifted among us." He explained and I titled my head with a nod. That was a useful ability. I was sure we had a guard long ago with that exact ability.

"Isabella is shielded against all psychic attacks. Edward, Kate, Jane, Alec, anyone whose ability affects the mind. It would be impossible for someone to do this to her." He paused, clinging to a thought, "Unless..."

"Unless what, friend?" Carlisle lay a hand on his shoulder.

"Unless...Isabella willingly lowered her shield and allowed whomever did this to her access to her memories."

"So what?" Jacob gasped, "She took down her shield and let someone take her memories? Turn her into..." He beckoned my way, "This!"

"I'm sat right here." I snarled.

"It is the only logical explanation."

"I know it angers you, but you are Bella Swan. You just don't know it." Alice looked down at me.

"She's not Bella! She's a monster. She's something else." Jacob looked at me with a look of despair.

"You know, I think I will kill you first, pup." I rose from my feet. I'd had enough!

"Stop."

Edward strolled into the room, an out of place smile across his face. He strode straight up to me and held out his hand. It was a photo album, the same photo album I had been skipping through in the Chief's living room. I stared at Edward, a question n my lips yet he spoke first. "Turn to the last page." Instead of arguing with him, I did as I was told.

The small rectangle shaped photograph had been folded in half, showing only one side of the picture. Edward. He stood there clad in an all black suit, pressed trousers and ironed blazer. His hair held that same, bronze sheen in the light of the candles behind him. He had his head titled down, smiling admiringly at something.

My steady fingers pulled the photograph free from the page and I carefully unfolded it. The other side revealed a girl. A girl wearing a knee-length, emerald coloured dress and a short-sleeved black cardigan atop it. Her dark hair fell in loose waves past her elegant neck and halfway down her shoulders, the dark colour contrasting against her fair complexion. Her skin papery white save for the pinched colour of her cheeks.

Her eyes. She had the most beautiful brown eyes I had ever seen.

I was the human in the photograph. The girl in the photograph was me.

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Asher's Note:

Hell everyone! I am sorry for the long wait, as you can tell this chapter is a long one, well it certainly felt like a long chapter as I was writing it. Nothing very interesting takes place in this chapter, the majority of it is storytelling. The others are telling Isabella about Bella's past, who she was and how she came to meet the Cullen's. As you can tell, this story takes place approximately two years after the end of New Moon, so the events of Eclipse and Breaking Dawn do not take place. In this chapter, we discover what the Cullen's believed happened to Bella. All they know is that somehow, Victoria managed to slip by and Kill Bella without being detected first. They are just as confused as you probably are about how she succeeded in doing so, although it will be explained in chapters to come. Please, let me know what you think about this chapter, how Isabella and the other characters reacted to the news. Why, if it is the truth, did Bella willingly allow her memories to be changed?

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Responding to your reviews:

Miss24fan: Thank you! I also love Badass Bella, and she is very flirty. So far she's been fantasizing about everyone but Edward! Ha-ha.

Warrof: "Huh..." Not sure whether that is a good 'Huh' or a bad one. Ha-ha. Hope you are enjoying.

LMB1: That is a very good question, the answer to which will be explained in chapters to come! :D

Macey: Thank you very much! It makes me happy to hear that :}

Alice: Here is the chapter! As for Kai, he is certain to show up soon! ;) As for the 'Meanwhile in Volterra' I did originally plan for this story to switch POV's with Aro, although I decided to scrap that Idea as it could easily spoil what is to come. I may eventually put in the odd chapter or two from another character's POV although at the moment, we just see the mind of Isabella.

Sharksaver23: Thank you :}

Kristie: Thank you :] glad you enjoyed it. Who will she end up with? We'll find out at the end!

Scubadivingchicken: First of all, awesome name. Secondly, thank you so much for a lovely review. At the moment, that is the question! Isabella believes herself to be a thousand years old, when the Cullen's believe her to be the Bella Swan we know from the books!

Ronnie32: Thank you very much, I hope you enjoy the direction I plan to take.

Melis: Thank you! I updated! Sorry it's late though!

~Asher~


	10. Chapter 10

**Isabella's POV:**

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In the last few hours alone, I had been the subject of several painstakingly long and meticulous tales of love, loss, wonder, pain and tragedy. For example, the Cullen's and their diet of animal blood; how this lifestyle diluted the enchanting ruby colour of their eyes to an unnatural, tedious gold because of said diet. The Shape-Shifters of the Quileute Tribe and their immoral treaty with the Cullen Coven to maintain peace throughout their lands. Then, of course, there was Edward and his doomed love for his Singer, Bella, and our shared invulnerability to mental offenses.

I had given enough thought to all I had heard up until the moment Edward walked through that door and handed me that photograph. I had believed there had to be some facet of the truth behind it all yet what I held in my hands had to be artifice; an illusion of the mind, trickery. There was absolutely no way that the girl in the photograph and I were one in the same.

"Bella?" It was Edward.

I scanned the photograph again, searching, pleading with myself to find something - anything - to free me from this confusion, to destroy the possibility that what they claimed was the honest to God truth. Yet I did not prevail. The human in the photograph was I, down to the land strand of hair as Edward had previously stated.

"Bella, can you hear me?" That stupid question again. He had begun to confess his concerns of my well being and silent state to the others. I sat there appearing frozen yet content on the outside whilst attempting to conquer an onslaught of blasphemous thoughts that threatened to shatter away the adamant existence I had forever rested against for support. Without that wall of security, I was nothing. Lost to the void.

Edward stood before me, speaking directly at me yet the words failed to make sense. Nothing made sense. Nothing needed to.

All I knew in that moment was that I had a singular goal: to escape.

I stood up and the silence returned. The words Edward spoke travelled through one ear and out the other, not even bothering to formulate into comprehensible thoughts. I no longer paid any mind to the words he spoke, or the others. I cared not for any of them, not even enough to take enjoyment in their demise.

"Bella?" I struck Edward so hard across the mouth that his entire jaw cracked; the sheer force of my punch lifted him clean off his feet and sent him soaring across the room. He crashed through the wall, cracking the brick and plaster― as well as his spine.

Edward cried out in pain and torment, attempting to stand yet his knees buckled beneath him, his face mangled into an expression of true hurt. Carlisle called out for his son, his voice a distant memory in the back of my mind, much like the small shred of respect I had held for him. Then Carlisle was there, knelt by his side and assuring him it was going to be alright. Minutes. Minutes were all it would take for Edward's broken spine to heal and for him to be on his feet once more, but all I needed was minutes.

I had to think logically. Escape was only possible if I fought, but to fight was useless if one of my enemies could foresee my advances. I had to take out the Seer- and she knew it. When I turned, Alice leapt backwards to escape the fatal swipe of my claws. She then stunned me by leaping not away from me but at me, one hand snatching mine out the air as the other went for my throat, her pleas for me to stop almost inaudible. I managed to pivot around her and turn the tables on her, using her own arm against her. The others were on their feet in less than a second, their bodies nothing but blurs as they shot around the furniture to assist their friends. Then they were all on me. All of them lunging in my direction with panic spread across their features.

I heard the others coming for me, yelling my name. One of them called out instead for Alice. Jasper. Just as he reached for me, I lashed out at him from behind, allowing my leg to arch up high, and my boot slammed hard into the centre of his chest. Esme flew forwards to catch him and to cushion his fall, yet he was taller than her and my kick took the two of them down in one.

I focused my attention by on the short seer and found myself grinning as I changed the angle of my blow in a fraction of a second and my hand tore through the marble that was her leg, separating it from just above the knee with a lingering, metallic screech that similarly matched her own. As her unbalanced body crumbled, I wasted no time and hoisted Alice's leg into the air, swinging it like a bat, I swatted Tanya away.

I was in the middle of three of them then: Rosalie, Emmett and Eleazar. Rose was the closest and the smallest so I went for her first. My fist slammed into her face, then I brought my elbow into Eleazar's throat behind me, I turned back to Rosalie and struck home again before spinning to face her brute of a mate. His right-hook took me off guard and I slammed face first into the wall. I used this opportunity to reach out, snatch up the giant wooden cross ornament and I smashed it against his gigantic form.

He fell back; shielding himself from another several of my punches - over his shoulder I took note of how Jasper lifted Alice into his arm and fleeing from the room with her. Rosalie's face blocked my view, so I lashed out and my claws tore apart her jacket and shirt. I raked my nails down her throat repeatedly, carving lines into her swan-like neck, listening to the sounds of her screams and allowing them to cheer me up.

Esme was there. Already she looked finished. Her shirt somehow managed to tear in the chaos, her once perfect hair now a mess atop of her head. "Bella, Bella please, Listen to reason-" She did not get to finish her plea as I grabbed a handful of her soft, caramel curls and I bounced her face off my knee then shoved her backwards. She scrambled away from me, arms up to protect herself from my final, life-taking swipe.

A giant ball of fur hit me hard and now it was my turn to go sprawling across the broken wood and glass. My head snapped up to find the giant russet coloured wolf standing before a broken Esme, his muzzle pulled back to reveal his many jagged canines. Jacob summoned a low growl from deep within, a warning. I chose to ignore it.

I could hear the panicked snarls and howls from the pack outside; too large to get in the house yet from the looks of it one of them was preparing to smash through the windows. Just as Sam went to phase as Jacob had done, I took my opportunity and leapt across the room. The furniture passed me by in a split second and before he knew it, I had knocked their Alpha out cold.

Carmen darted in front of me, her leg came up to my side yet as the top of her foot hit my waist, I caught it and clung to her leg firmly. Growling, I spun her on the spot and launched her into her husband; the two landed atop the coffee table, shattering the glass and splintering the wood. I turned back for the door but Emmett had returned to face me, blocking the doors entirely. It was at this moment I realized I was stood at the bottom of the grand staircase. With a wink, I kicked up off the ground and leapt high into the air, the sitting room vanishing below as I reached out and flipped over the banister onto the landing.

I could hear them, sprinting up the stairs, calling out my name - calling out _her_ name. Bella. I did not listen. I stalked down the finely furnished hall until I saw it. The window. I set off running. Just as the others reached the landing, just as they thought they had me cornered, I ran and I leapt straight through the window at the end of the hall. My knees came up to meet my chest, my arms to shield my eyes from the glass even though I knew it would do me no real harm. The glass shattered around me, the shards raining down on me like sharp rain. My body soared high over the entrance to the Cullen home and I landed firmly on my feet across the lawn from them.

I straightened from my stance and glanced over my shoulder. Several of them stood by the broken window; others had opened the front door to face me. The wolves charged around either side of the house.

"Stop!" Carlisle called out to those that had decided to follow. "She's too far gone, leave her be!" At this, they dropped back and allowed me to escape without issue. The wisest decision they had made all day. I took one last second to memorize the look Edward - whose spine had healed enough to allow him to stand - gave me, the hurt, the sorrow, the loss, before I decided to flee and never return.

* * *

 _What the fuck had just happened to me?_ This was one of the hundreds of thoughts that raced through my head. With each step I took, another dozen thoughts crowded my mind; a thousand emotions tore through me at once. Only now, away from their nagging voices and judgmental faces, could I begin to think with words.

I did not understand. I did not want to understand it, not yet at least. All I wanted...was to go home.

I was half way out of Forks when I remembered my bag at the Bed and Breakfast. I contemplated leaving it, the clothes and books were expendable, the information Sebastian had gathered on Victoria was not. Therefore, with an infuriated groan, I altered my course and headed back towards town. As I stormed down the near empty streets, I caught Alice Cullen's scent. At first, I believed she had foreseen my return to the Bed and Breakfast and come to intercept me, although after stopping and pulling in a deep breath through my nose, I figured out the scent was faded. If she had seen my return, she had not acted on it. Most likely on Carlisle's demand.

Curious. They had been determined to keep me hostage yet now Alice could see where I would be, they chose to ignore it and leave me be? I chose not to dwell on such thoughts; I did not wish to think very much at all.

I did not bother with the facade as I had earlier than same morning; I hurried through the door and towards the stairs.

"I hadn't seen you leave?" The old woman behind the desk exclaimed as she spotted me. I barged by, ignoring her and I ascended the stairs as she patted down her flour covered hands on her apron. She had been baking. How very cliché "What's the matter with your eyes, dear?" she asked as she followed, patting. I had not bothered with lenses either. "Is something the matter?" she pondered. I knew how different I appeared to her. Earlier that morning I stood, cowering before her, appearing as a drowned rat, a girl in dire need of a bath and a warm bed. Now, I stood before her in my true form. Tall, dark, strong and terrifying.

I made my way to the bedroom she had given me and tried the door. I had forgotten I had locked it. I did not bother with the pleasantries such as asking for the spare key, instead I took a step back and kicked the door in. It snapped from its hinges, rocketing across the room and crashing into the china cabinet on the opposite side as it did so.

The old woman cried out at my action, staring at the door and the remnants of the china cabinet as she followed me in. Hand on her fragile, rapid heart. I reached for my jacket, slid it on then slid my bag over my shoulder.

"Y-You must pay for that!" She shrilled as she followed me down the hall and to the staircase. Just as I went to leave, she hurried so step in front of me and I came to an abrupt halt.

"Get out of my way." I summoned a deep growl from the bottom of my throat, the hollow sound echoing off the walls.

"Didn't you hear me girl?" I had seemingly angered her. "I told you to-" I gave her light shove - a tap, really - on the shoulder and the old woman rocketed backwards, tumbling down the stairwell to the entrance below.

I watched her body fold and bend, her elbows and knees crashing against the railing and the wall, her head hitting almost every step on the way down. Slowly, I followed her. I stepped over her body and stood still, tucking my hair behind my ears to listen. Besides the sounds of the world, the cars, the birds, the television in the other room, was the faint sound of her beating heart.

I left the Bed and Breakfast.

* * *

Once back at the hotel, I followed Sebastian's scent towards the hotel bar and found him inside. The bar, much like the hotel itself, was small and dimly lit. The only illumination came from the long hanging ceiling lights, the odd wall lamp here and there and the grey light of day peaking through the crack in the drawn curtains. Sebastian sat at the bar, alone in this entire room.

"Isabella," He greeted me as he sipped what appeared and smelt to be blood from a martini glass. I stiffened, gripping onto the bar so tightly that I caused the wooden frame to splinter beneath my fingertips. I did not require feeding for another week at least, although I still had to fight back the temptation to lunge across the room, tackle the white-heard man sat before me and end him if it meant being the one to consume the blood.

Speaking of blood, as I drew closer the scent of death hit me.

"Drinking blood and killing out in the open. Either you do not believe I will report this to Aro or you have a death wish." I tried to maintain my well-known careless, emotionless front, the picture of perfect I had always deemed myself to be, yet I found it a much more challenging task than I had presumed.

"Maybe I do." He commented. "But I was questioned this morning by two detectives here at the hotel investigating the brutal murder of a young couple preparing to go on their honeymoon; I am a little on edge." He teased me with a wink.

If my cheeks could burn, they would have. "Touché,"

He crushed the glass in his hand before flexing his fingers and the shards fell to the tiles below. He stood up and stepped over the body of the barman. I admired his work for a moment. From the way the human was killed, it appeared he had slipped and cracked his head open on the edge of the bar; Sebastian had simply held a glass to the gentleman's forehead and allowed the blood to flow. I followed him out into the lobby, then towards the elevator. Once the silver doors closed in front of us, he spoke. "Victoria?" He asked not daring to make a joke or remark now.

Her face flashed beneath my eyelids and my chest concaved within. I had allowed my actual goal to slip by. I took a noticeable second to think about my response. The word - her name - brought not only her face to mind but others too. The Cullen's, Jacob and the pack, Edward and - and Bella.

In that moment, I made the worst decision of my entire existence.

"Ash in the wind."

I had lied.

* * *

Thrilled with my answer, Sebastian had arranged a flight from Seattle - Tacoma international airport to our home country of Italy, to Pisa from which it would take us less than an hour to return to Volterra. I left Sebastian talking to himself in the hall and entered my room. I shot from the door to the bed where I sat with my legs crossed and my face in my hands, blocking out the lights from the city beyond the window, giving myself a moment in silent darkness.

It was at times like this I wished I were able to sleep. I envied this about the humans, their ability to lay their head and close their eyes and, for a while at least, leave the harsh realities of life behind. To distract myself form such self-harming thoughts, I decided to pack. I had several bags, mostly due to my shopping spree in New York and London, yet it all seemed to be for naught. What was the point of enjoying my expensive wardrobe when I was obliged to wear a cloak the majority of the time? Another setback of being stationed in Volterra.

I packed away the last of my belongings bathed to wash away the irritation the day had left on me. Afterwards, I changed into a dress I had bought whilst we were in London: an off-white, short-sleeved sweater dress I had simply adored in the shop yet felt nothing for it now. I slid on a pair of open-toed pumps and combed through my hair until it was dry and swaying by my waist. As I looked at myself in the mirror, I could not help but see Bella Swan. The human girl Edward obsessed over, the plaything of his and his siblings. Bella was nothing.

I was everything.

I lashed out and smashed the mirror, the reflective pieces of glass scattered across the tiles of the en suite, reflecting the harsh lights above. I stepped over them, grabbed my bags and left the hotel room behind.

Stepping out of the hotel, I opened my big grey umbrella and walked across the tarmac to where Sebastian stood by one of several black cars, waiting. Two of his men hurried forward to take my bags from me; a third took the umbrella and held it over my head as I approached. I was cautious as Sebastian held open the car door for me, worrisome as if he were going to strike me from behind. As he closed the door and got in the other side, I realized my cynicism of Sebastian and his men was displaced. They worked for me, and I worked for Aro. It was the way things were. If I showed my worry, they were sure to catch on that something was distracting me. I refused to be seen as weak.

Eventually we arrived at the airport and Sebastian's men lead the two of us across the empty runway to the same jet we had been using since the first flight. Although this time, I did not sit with Sebastian. I ignored his offer and made my way to the back of the jet where I took my seat alone and away from all of his men. I put down the umbrella and sat back with my handbag by my side. I reached down and took out my cell phone, clicked in my earphones and allowed soft music to take my thoughts away.

The music playing was a recording of the music composed by Pytor Ilyich Tchaikovsky. He had been a favourite of mine since his _First Symphony,_ and my love for him had only grown. In the year 1873, Kai and I had been a part of a team sent across to Russia to protect Aro who was visiting a coven of immortals he once knew. Kai had been asked along so Aro could alter the memories of a Newborn in this coven whom he wanted as one of his men. I had been asked along to eradicate those that would attempt to keep him from us. Unfortunately, the Newborn had already been disposed off before our arrival, so Aro had me order my men to dispose of his 'Friends' anyway. During our free time in Russia, Kai had taken me to see Tchaikovsky perform and if I had been a human, I would have even shed a tear.

Instead, I mocked Kai for his futile attempt at courting me and made my way home. I felt a stab of guilt. That night was one of the best of my millennia and I had acted as if it was nothing more than a waste of time. I found myself itching to get back to him, back home. Home. The word flooded me with images of familiar sand coloured buildings, orange slate tiles, forests of the most vibrant greens. It brought back the faces and the voices of those I considered family. I did not care for very many of my men, for many in general, yet I did see Marcus' warm and welcoming smile, Corin's sniggering comments, Heidi's flirting eyes, even Alec's glare and Jane's threats as comfort in this time.

Of course, there was Aro and his soothing voice, the tingling sensation I felt when he ran his hand through my hair, and most of all his adoration for me. Then I thought of Kai and my ache in my chest lightened. Kai. When I thought of Aro I thought of him as my father, my friend but beneath it all it was a ruse, that in truth he was my master first and foremost but with Kai...he honestly loved me simply because of who I was. Not because I was a skilled warrior, or a shield. In fact, Kai wanted nothing more than my love in return, it was all he had wanted for a century, and I had yet to give him the time of day.

I felt the need to apologise to him more. However, whether I would or not was another matter altogether.

In spite of the security the word 'Home' brought to me, it also filled me with conflict. Conflict between the desire to return to the city that had been home to me and mine for almost ten centuries, and the dread at returning and being exposed as a liar. Knowing all too well that if my Masters - if anyone, honestly - discovered that I of all immortals had lied about tracking down my target and burning her to ash then it would be my turn to feel the sweet scorching release of death.

As if hearing my thoughts as Edward would have done, Sebastian rose from his seat and crossed the jet to speak to one of his men. He winked at me as he passed. I suppressed a sigh. One of the amazing results of our immortal selves was our unnatural agility and grace; our resilience to discomfort and boredom. I was capable of sitting on that plane, in that exact seat, as still and as cold as a statue made of stone, physically frozen in time, as to hide the troubles raging behind this facade, which threatened to expose my panic to Sebastian.

I contemplated slaughtering Sebastian to dispose of my secret quickly and fluently, though surely his men had assumed I had finished my hunt due to our flight back home, so I would have needed to destroy each of them too...Although I could inform my masters, tell them that we were attacked by the Cullen's. That possessing a mind reader, seer and army of werewolves at their disposal granted them the advantage and took us by surprise. At this, Aro perhaps would have allowed me to take an army of my own to Forks to destroy them all. I could have taken twice, thrice the amount of men the Cullen's could stand against. Wolves or no wolves, we could have destroyed them all and made it home in time for sundown.

Although I figured that would offer some speculation among the Guard. Why would the Cullen's have travelled all the way to Pisa to attack, why would they not launch their attack before we took our flight to make things easier for themselves? In addition, my being the only one to escape an attack of such magnitude intact could stir questionable thoughts from others. Of course, I could have just persuaded them that it was my wary demeanour, untapped skills and centuries of battle knowledge that kept me alive, yet against werewolves and two dozen immortals, it seemed near impossible to escape unscathed.

Or worse, they could believe that I fled the battle to ensure my own safety. No. That could not be the case. This scenario would result in more lies. Lies transitioned into secrets and secrets could be used as leverage.

The flight home was excruciatingly long. Time usually was no issue for me, seen as though time had become a background concept, yet even I was tempted to kick open the door and leap from the aircraft. I finished eight of the tomes I had packed and listened to every song on my cell phone three times over. It was a ten-hour flight, and a nine-hour time difference between Seattle and Pisa. Meaning that we left at nine Pm Seattle time and arrived at four Pm Pisa time. I take back what I said earlier. I was thankful I did not have to suffer through jet lag.

I was the first off the plane, although since it was still bright out - the first of the sun I had seen in days - I had to slide on a pair of elbow length white gloves and hold my umbrella above my head, shielding my face and chest from the sun - as did Sebastian and his men. We did not risk exposure, so we made our way indoors and underground to the purling lot as soon as possible.

I put away the umbrella and glanced over my shoulder to witness a Mercedes pull in by our side. I recognized it as the car my men would have sent to collect me upon receiving word I was returning home. The driver, however, was a young woman this time. I did not care enough to question what had happened to the last.

"So it would appear the moment we have been dreading has arrived, Isabella." Sebastian sauntered around me in circles, a mock sadness among his features. "I am afraid this is where we part ways. I return to the skies, to travel to far off lands and you...you return to our beloved home, to our malevolent yet merciful Father. I do hope you will-"

I did not hear the end of his sentence as by the time he had turned around I had already slid into the Mercedes and demanded the subjugate to drive.

The drive home passed in no time at all compared to the flight from Seattle. It was as if one moment we were on the road, flying past the rolling emerald sea and the next we were home, suddenly I was back within the tall, ancient walls of Volterra. It was still a few hours until nightfall but an idea came to mind and although I knew the risks, I could not refuse myself the gift. I sat forward and tapped the subjugate girl on the shoulder, causing her to jump and almost crash the car.

"Y-Yes, Ma'am?"

"Stop." The subjugate driver jumped at the sound of my voice, I had not even bothered to greet the human when she picked me up from the airport, the majority of my men did not deem the humans that worked for us worthy of being addressed as equals.

"Of course," she muttered and she pulled up to the side of one of the roads several blocks away from the courtyard.

"Take my things to my chambers, inform Jane of my return and assure her I will meet with Aro shortly."

"B-But ma'am, it's light out?"

I was tempted to kill her for stating the obvious, but then who would have returned my things? "I know that." I slid on the gloves, opened the car door, clicked up the umbrella and stepped out. It was light out, yet thankfully, the tall buildings around me cast enough shade to disguise the glow of my skin. To any human it would simply appear that the sun had caught me on the right angle.

I slammed the car door and took a single step back. The car sped off around the corner and left me alone in the street with only a few of the locals. I decided to take a long stroll home. After spending so long in countries whose nights and days were chill and damp, I found a strange urge to wonder the familiar streets of my home. The only sound was that of my heels against the slate tiles beneath, the few birds that chirped this late in the day, the chattering of the locals who met in the street with their children, markets stall vendors calling out the fruits and vegetables they had on sale; I savoured the sensation of the warm welcome.

I turned a corner onto another street and walked by a human girl with coppery skin and glossy black hair, similar to that of Jacob Black. She looked up at me, startled by the colour of my eyes and tugged on her mother's gown. By the time the mother turned to scold the child that had disrupted her conversation, I was another road away.

I took in the familiar scent of the plant life, and the sand like dust that coated almost everything. I ran my fingers along the smooth wall of one of the many sienna stone buildings and rubbed the tips of my fingers together. It felt strange, to be home again, almost as if I were here early.

In a way, I was. I had lied to Sebastian and told him I had destroyed Victoria when in fact, I had failed to even locate her. This was a lie that would consume me the longer it lived, yet how I was going to destroy it was still a complication. I figured that I would have to request a leave from Aro. Put on the charade that after leaving Volterra and travelling I became inspired and felt the tug of adventure. It was not a silly request and Aro, as angry as he was at times, would maybe be generous and grant me it. It would be during this leave that I would need to truly track down and obliterate Victoria. Only then would I be safe.

Eventually I found myself back in the centre of the courtyard, stood directly before the clock tower and the fountain it shadowed. As I walked by, I could feel the eyes of my men and woman on me, watching carefully from the shadows and oblivious to the many humans that walked idly on by. Unbeknownst to them, I pictured the Cullen's standing by my side - well, Alice and Edward, at least, and Bella. Edward preparing to expose himself after believing his mate dead, when in fact she was racing across these very stone flags to stop him from being the first to die.

Tragic. Dramatic. - And real. It was as if I could feel the memory surrounding me.

After another still moment, I decided that I did not want my men to question as to why their Overseer was stood staring at the clock tower like some tourist, so I headed in through the wooden doors.

Finally, I was home.

* * *

Asher's Note:

Hello everyone! Sorry for the wait but here is chapter 10: In this chapter, Isabella fights free of the Cullen's and returns home to Volterra. I have a question for my lovely, amazing readers! How many of you have read _Life and Death: Twilight reimagined._ For those who do not know what _Life and Death_ is, upon the ten-year anniversary of Twilight's release, Stephanie Meyer released an alternate version of twilight. It was not Midnight Sun, as we all would have wished, but a version of twilight where the majority of the characters are Gender swapped. Bella is a boy called Beau, Edward is a girl called Edythe. I was wondering what your thoughts on the alternate story are _and_ if she did continue this alternate story as a series, what alternate titles would you give to New Moon Eclipse and Breaking Dawn? Sorry for the questions, as I was just curious!

* * *

Responding to your reviews:

Warrof: I see. Yes, Isabella's lover is named Kai. As for his part to play in the alteration of her memories, the truth will be revealed in chapters to come.

LRJ: 'Not Bad' Thank you, I am glad you enjoyed.

Melis: Thank you, from here in England :}

Sharksaver23: Thank you :} As to whether or not she believes them, Isabella is still undecided. What would you believe? If some random strangers approached you and tried to convince you that your entire life is a lie?

Miss24fan: Thank you! I enjoyed writing it. I mean, as gentle and as boring as Bella was in the Saga, she was a teenager and the lack of actual teenage attitude in YA is something that annoys me. She is a teenager, teenagers curse - then again, this Isabella is a thousand year old immortal... or is she? ;)

Debbie Hicks: Um...I am so sorry. I have read your Review many times yet cannot seem to fathom what it is you are trying to say...Sorry. I do not know whether it is due to English not being your native language or if you were drunk, ha-ha. Either way, I am thrilled you reviewed and if it is because English is not your native language, then thank you for taking the time to attempt to write a review in my language. :}

Macey: That is alright and thank you so much :} Glad you enjoyed.

Guest: Well, aren't you a little evil ;) I joke. I do love Isabella with the Volturi. I always love it when a good guy goes bad.

LMB1: Good theories. We will see in due time.

Twilight- et - the - vampire: Je vous remercie. J'espère que vous apprécierez ce chapitre également. Pardonnez-moi, mon français est très mauvais et j'utilise l'Internet pour me aider à répondre.

Guest: Thank you :] I hope you enjoy.

Kristie: Thank you :] I wish I did too but unfortunately real life has to get in the way.

Alice: Thank you so much :} That is exactly what the end of last chapter was like. Although unfortunately for Isabella, she is more confused now than she has ever been. Thank you again, it means a lot.

Huntergatherer: Thank you :} We will see.

LG1998: I decided to save your review for last, simply because I could focus on it more. First of all, thank you for such a long and thought out review. I can tell clearly by the words you wrote that you took your time in reviewing, unlike so many others in the past on other stories. It means a lot to me when someone takes the time to not only review and tell me they enjoy the story but also point out what they enjoyed, how it made them feel and so on. It really means a lot to me. Thank you. As you can tell from this chapter, Isabella's memories have no yet returned. As of this moment, all she is trying to do is find solitude in the place she once called home to try to figure this entire thing out. As for your theories, they are all very good and we shall see which ones come to play in later chapters! Thank you, cannot wait to hear what you think of this chapter.

~Asher~


	11. Chapter 11

**Isabella's POV**

* * *

The doors behind me closed of their own accord, the heavy and ancient wood meeting with a crash that echoed throughout the ancient building. The hall before me was long and narrow, and decorated on either side with vibrant green plant life, old and decrepit bookcases and oil paintings dreamt up centuries ago. At the far end of the corridor, there was a window. A large and rectangular window that reminded me eerily of the one I had sprang through at the Cullen home, and the mere sight of it stirred up memories of their faces - his face - memories I was trying valiantly to burry.

I looked away and continued walking. I had decided on using the visitor's entrance, as there was absolutely no chance of my leaping through a sewer grate and slugging through the catacombs below the city to enter my home - especially not in a dress as fine and flattering as this.

I turned another corner and pushed through a door, on which a small metal plate read the word _Privato_ **,** and then I headed down a flight of stone flag steps, pressed a button and waited for the arrival of the elevator.

The moment I stepped through, the gleaming stainless steel doors closed, the opera music begun to play, and I turned to face my reflection in the mirrored wall. Flawless, as always. The bright luminescent lights flickered, turning my skin chalky white and creating white, circular rings in the dark of my eye like a solar eclipse. My hands ran down the course of my body, over my hips and around to the hem of my dress.

As I stood there and contemplated my outfit, a random realization occurred to me.

I hated my outfit. What in the world was I wearing?

As if someone had flipped a switch in my mind. One moment I was adoring my outfit, the pumps, the cotton of the dress, the pearly white colour that matched my skin, and the next I loathed every aspect of it. I did not wear these kinds of dresses. I also did not enjoy wearing white, yet I stood there dressed in it from head to toe. My colour was black. My official robes were black and I favoured the colour in my free time.

What on earth had possessed me to buy such an irregular, distasteful thing?

After a week of my slaughtering our kind, being taken hostage by a dozen immortals that were not only strangers to me, but whose entire lifestyle and physiology was entirely an alien concept, being introduced to living shape-shifters and having my identity questioned, I wanted nothing more than to return to the existence I knew and loved.

This change in character was not what I wanted - let alone needed. If anything, it was the complete opposite - this sudden alteration of who I was, who I had always been was at the least concerning - and I had not felt a sensation such as this in many, many years. Knowing it was too late to return to my chambers and change, I decided that I would have to brace the questioning thoughts and glares of my brothers and sisters, my masters, to hope that they would not think too much into it.

The doors opened with a ring, and I stepped out into the small but spacious reception, in which the human secretary sat behind an ancient, curving desk. Her name: Bianca. Or was Bianca the last girl Jane had slaughtered? I could not remember. She was in her late thirties and aging every second. It showed in the wrinkles in the corner of her eyes, the changing of colour in her hair and the sagging of her skin. I looked around the room and to say it was a spacious room, it had very little furnishings. Behind the desk were several stacked shelves and cases filled to the rim with all sorts of mindless stationary: books, notepads, other boring bits; and in the corner by the far wall, a glass vase had been placed atop a small tabletop. It would appear she had replaced the roses that had withered and died by the time I had left for my hunt. Had that really been only a week ago?

Ignoring my own question, I continued to walk. The moment the tap of my heels hit her, a solid second after the ping of the elevator, her head snapped up in my direction and she shot to her feet, almost tripping over her heels, I might add.

" _Benvenuti a casa!_ She practically yelled at me with a mangled smile. She was welcoming me home. I did not return her smile nor offer her a second glance. I continued through the door ahead and down another marble corridor. The memory of my conversation with Alice Cullen flashed to the forefront of my mind, and how she had wondered if I had bothered to know the name of Bella Swan's human father, Charlie, I recalled. I scolded myself for allowing another memory to surface. As hard as it would certainly be, I had to do my best to ignore all notion of the Cullen's from my thoughts, until I could understand what I needed to do with the knowledge I had.

After heading up the stairwell and turning another corner, I found myself at the end of the hall to the throne room, outside of which guarded Felix and Dimitri, perfectly as they had the week last. I stalked towards them and subtly included a little sass into my walk, adding to the sway of my hips and behind. Dimitri's eyes betrayed his otherwise stone cold features, unknowingly informing me of his surprise. Felix smiled and granted me a welcoming nod.

"Isabella...you've returned."

"My, aren't you an observant one, Dimitri." I found myself strangely comforted by Felix's welcoming smile and Dimitri's ravenous stare as he took in my long, bare legs and plunging neckline.

"We have missed you most dearly, haven't we, brother?" He asked Felix, although his eyes remained on me. Or more so, my body. Felix did not reply, but rolled his eyes at his companion before facing me formally again.

"Welcome home," An honest, truthful welcome from someone that actually cared for my authority, not out of fear like others such as Heidi and Jane, or even lust as Dimitri, but out of respect for me as an individual. How had I not seen Felix's loyalty before this?

I did not thank him though; I had not used manners in a very long time also. I did, however return the smile he gave me and this was enough to acknowledge him. Confused by my response, Dimitri did not toy with me and instead just stepped back and opened the doors to the throne room. Leaving my boys behind, I entered in search of my master.

Unlike my meeting the week prior, this was not an official summon, meaning that the three thrones atop the dais were empty. I was thankful. If I had interrupted a meeting the Trio were holding, I would not have been in trouble, per se, but would have had to explain to them how my hunt went. Aro, my master, I could handle. Truth be told, he could be terrifying in his own way, and if he discovered my lies then I would be sure to face a brutally painful punishment, if not death itself. Although Aro's adoration for me as his finest creation gave me a risky sense of hope that, if it came to it, I could deter the conversation away from vital details without him taking notice and questioning my motives. It would be harder to lie to the other two, one of whom loathed and distrusted me and the other whom refused to acknowledge my existence at all.

I made my way across the dome chamber and through an archway into one of the few adjoining rooms. This particular one acted as a form of study, complete with two entire walls of built in marble bookcases, a roaring hearth almost twice my size and a table that had once belonged to the home of the once great Romanian coven, whom had been long extinct. And there, sat in a large, wooden chair by the roaring flames and with a book in his lap, was Aro, my master.

He sat so casually, with one leg folded over the other. His long dark hair fell like a curtain by his face, behind his ears and down to his shoulders. He wore pressed, ironed black trousers and a sleek black shirt and looking so smart, even in his free time.

"What do you want?" He asked in a flat, monotone voice.

"An audience with my sire," I teased; upon hearing my voice, capturing my scent as it hit him, Aro's head snapped in my direction, his dark burgundy eyes widened and his mouth popped open into a little gasp of surprise before his fine lips pulled back into a twisted smile that could raise nightmares in any mortal child.

"Isabella..." He cooed, speaking my name with that same, Italian accent he always had. The sound of his voice rang like church bells throughout the entire throne room.

"Master," I lowered my head, a bow, a curtsy. He closed the tome he had been reading with a snap, set it down and shot across the room in an instant. Before this week, I would have opened my arms and welcomed his embrace with not only pride but also love. Now? I found myself battling the urge to step away.

"I am so pleased you have returned to us, safe and sound." He knew I would. Did he not? He pulled back, beaming at me. "Let me look at you." He took in my outfit and gasped as if noticing it for the first time. I did not understand why he said things such as this. We immortals had immaculate, impossible eyesight and a memory that never fades. The moment he spotted me, he had taken in every single detail of my face, my body language and the outfit I wore. I supposed it was a front, to try to play the part of an old human friend.

An idea came to mind and I seized my chance. "Do you like it?" I stepped away from him and gave him an obviously girly twirl. "I spotted it in London and simply had to have it." A simple sweater dress, nothing magnificent or ridiculously expensive - not for us, anyway.

" _Sei Bellissima_!" He looked to be admiring the dress. "It is so unlike you...to buy something such as this?"

Shit. He was questioning. I shrugged and looked down at myself, pretending to admire the dress and the shoes (But also to avoid his eyes and the milky film over them) "A lady likes to treat herself every once and a while to something new, and I was feeling a little adventurous. Although I must admit, I do miss my black leather".

Instead of pretending as if this outfit change was not noticeable, I would make it noticeable. Act as If I purposely wore something different, thus was my plan. I just hoped that my saying I missed my typical black attire would refrain from his questions and thoughts on this "risky Isabella."

"To me, you look _radiante_ in every colour." I smiled another unspoken thank you. "I trust your hunt went smoothly?" He lay a hand on my back and lead me back through to the brighter throne room. In the seconds we had entered, members of my guard - Anton, Delphi and Renata - all took their allotted places in the room. Aro's personal guards, well, Renata was at least. The other two were assigned here today in case Aro required them for something.

"A smoothly as can be expected when hunting down ones enemies." I informed him. I prayed to whatever gods would listen that he would not ask of the details. Of course, I could have recited every detail of every kill with precision, and fabricated a perfectly reasonable tale of how I destroyed Victoria upon locating her in Forks. I could have sounded convincing. However, to lie in detail, then to be exposed later was worse than to lie but to be subtle about it. If such a thing were possible in this situation

"Wonderful!" He clapped his hands together as he stepped over the grate in the centre of the room, I could smell blood from beneath. He would have fed, recently. That would have explained the lack of bruising in his powdery skin. "You enjoyed yourself?"

"Immensely," Another lie, the trip had almost destroyed me. I wanted the normalcy of my life to resume.

"Excellent." He turned to face me, looking up at me as I wore heels and he was not a tall man. He lifted his hand and I knew what he wanted, so I leaned low on bended knee as he pressed his lips softly against my forehead. "You have done well, my child." Aro pulled back after what felt like an eternity. "Take some time, however long you wish." At this, I almost physically sighed in relief. I was thankful he had offered me this gift and I had not needed to beg him for it. Of course, if I had, he would have granted me it no questions asked - no verbal ones, at least, although I knew he would be questioning my lack of interest in returning to my work as his hand mentally.

"Are you sure?" I asked, begging him to say yes.

"Of course," He shook his head slightly as if it were obvious, "I spoke with Sebastian, he spoke highly of your efforts to remove those who threatened our peace." He had spoke with Sebastian. Why then, had Sebastian not informed him not only of my killing two humans out in the open, but that I had also spent much longer in Forks that he would have imagined and allowed Victoria to escape me at least once? I decided not to ask questions, not to speak at all.

"Go," he urged, stepping back to sit atop his throne. His voice much deeper as he said, "Go, and rest, as there is much work to be done."

I dropped low again, another deep bow, before backing out of the room. The moment the doors closed behind me, I felt my entire body ease up. I had done it. I had accomplished the impossible. I lied to Aro and escaped with my life, but to what end?

"I could not help but overhear you have been granted time off, Isabella, might I suggest you and I spend some quality time together," Dimitri started, "I have missed you dearly and-"

I was gone before he could finish the sentence,

* * *

Baring Aro's words in mind, I did not return to my chambers immediately as my heart desired, but instead I begrudgingly made my way across town and headed east. It was twilight and the sun was setting far beyond the rolling ocean of hillside, turning the sky to a deep purple and the emerald green to a dark basil colour, setting a solemn, warm air.

After a short walk, I found myself heading down an alley on the far side of town, beneath one of the few taller buildings in Volterra. I stopped directly below it, staring up at the railing surrounding the rooftops. I glanced around once and kicked up off the ground. The balcony came to meet me and I reached out and flipped myself over the stone railing with ease. Standing across the rooftop, wearing the grey robes of my replaceable guards, was a man by the name of Rhys; his hair the colour of ink, his cheeks sunken and his features sharp and angled.

He turned to face whoever had disrupted his watch, but once he noticed it was me he stepped back and lowered his chin to his chest. The higher-ranking guards spoke to me with rapport, as friends and family. The lower ranking guards addressed me as their superior. They knew perfectly well that I could swipe their heads from their shoulders and no one would bat an eyelid. They could not afford to risk jokes, especially with me.

"Isabella." He addressed me.

"Rhys" I sighed. I turned towards the balcony. This was one of the tallest of towers in town, overlooking the city and the forests and hills beyond it. In the distance, I could see the winding grey road that lead away from our home. "I have new orders for you." He stepped forward and lay his hand atop the railing, too close for my liking. He noticed my glare and stepped away, bowing his head apologetically. "From now onwards, you will not inform the throne room guards of any visitors that approach the city, you will report directly to me. It matters not whether Aro knows them well or they are complete strangers. Is that understood?"

I could sense Rhys frowning from behind me. He barely had time to shift his features before I spun on him. "I said is that understood?" Trying to maintain a front of maturity, he nodded to me. I turned and stalked away.

"Of course...but why?" I stopped moving and slowly turned to face him.

"What did you say?"

He knew had has made a grave mistake. "Uh-"

"The why is none of your concern." I moved forward and stood atop the stone railing, my feet planted firmly, the breeze blew my hair forward and brought with it the scent of my home. "One more thing, Rhys," I glanced over my shoulder, "If you ever question me again...I'll burn you."

I leapt off the building.

* * *

When I opened the doors to my chambers, I almost collapsed with relief. Obviously, I mean that figuratively, but the sense of freedom I felt within the familiar walls of not only my home, but my chambers was so overwhelming I even cracked a smile.

I slammed the door and walked forward, flicking off my heels and physically tearing the dress from my body until it landed in a pile of cotton rags at my bare feet - as I said, white wasn't my colour and money was no object. The room was chill due to the open windows, which I suspected had been open since the day I left, so I sauntered over to the fireplace and lit the remaining logs. The lush fur carpet was soft against my almost naked body, gentle and smooth and relaxing.

Although the dust that coated everything agitated me, more than I thought it would have. Unlike the other guard chambers, I refused to allow any human cleaners to enter. I had documentation in this room that held Aro's most treasured secrets; there were things in this room that he would have no one know but I, not even Caius and Marcus. Of course, I did not need to hide the documents as if anyone had entered, their scent would linger and we would know who to torture and burn.

Although the only scents that lingered in this room, besides that of the human subjugate who had entered only to deliver my cases by the front door, was my own and Kai's. Thinking of Kai brought his face to the front of my mind and I wondered where he was, I had been back in Volterra an hour and he had yet to show his pretty little face. I waited another half an hour before deciding to unpack my new clothes (half of which I decided I loathed and threw away) before stripping completely and slipping into the bathtub. Another twenty minutes of soaking passed before I climbed out and headed back into the main room, the heat already drying my naked body.

Then I heard him. His footsteps on the stairwell, the ruffle of his shirt, his voice as he gasped my name, "Isabella?" I shot across the room and pulled out a skimpy, black lace piece I had bought in London. Some would call it a dress; others would call it a crop-top, and complete with suspenders. Not much of a difference when it came to this kind of lingerie. I slid it on, ran my fingers through my damp hair and crossed my arms.

The door opened and it was as if my heart beat for the first time in centuries.

"Isabella..."

"Kai." I scolded, "It's about time." He smiled and I felt the corner of my mouth twitch upwards. Then we both moved. This time, I was the one to grab him. I reached out and took his face in my hands, the stubble of his cheek rough against my hands as I brought our mouths together. Kai's lips, just as I remembered them, were soft and plump and sweet tasting, it was the closest thing I would ever get to berries. Immediately his arms were around me, wrapped completely around my slender body as my own moved down his throat.

His body was firm against my own, the planes of his chest pressing into my breasts. His hands slipped around from my back to my waist where, within seconds, his claws tore through the sultry black piece I had chosen especially for him, and I could not have cared less. "Beautiful..." he whispered into my hair, "Beautiful - so damn beautiful - god!" In fact, he was wearing far too many items of clothing for _my_ liking.

"Take them off." I growled. He went to undo the buttons on his shirt as I unbuttoned his black jeans. I had already finished with the jeans by the time he was on the fourth button. "You're taking too long," I slapped aside his hand and tore the shirt from his body. My nails raked down his chest, through his chest hair, scratching past his nipples and he winced in pain. I found myself slightly more aroused.

He leaned forward and grabbed me by the throat, his fingers digging in and suddenly we were against the wall again, my head against the stone, just as we had the night before I left him. Thinking of that night caused sadness to well up inside of me, yet thankfully his member pressing against my leg through his jeans were fighting away my unwanted thoughts. He shook off his jeans as we attempted to reach the couch, but we did not make it in time. In fact, we slammed into it so hard we flew over the side of it, bounced off the cushions and hit the stone flags hard, rolling atop one another until we reached the fur rug by the fireplace.

His muscles flexed beneath his skin as he heaved me forward and lay me flat against the soft fur rug. My hair exploded out by either sides of my face, the burning embers of the fireplace to my left cracked and splintered in my ears. One hand found my breasts, his fingers tweaking my erect nipples as the other hand slid beneath my legs, not that it needed too. I could feel his desires pressing against the inside of my leg, and it was as if I felt a current of longing run from head to toe, back up to another spot...

His soft, smooth hands gave my breast one last squeeze before journeying down my stomach, past my navel towards my thigh, and then he grabbed the flesh of it tightly and hitched my leg around his hip. I bit down on his lower lip, hard, and he laughed into my mouth, his breath hot like perfume. Then with a single thrust, he was inside me and I let out a soft sound - something about having him inside me again. It was as if my senses intensified, the heat felt hotter, his skin softer, the world a little brighter as I took in every black hair, every dip in his chest, every curve of his muscles, every flicker of flame in his eyes as he beat into me rhythmically.

He leaned down to kiss me again, this time as his lips pressed firmly against the hollow of my throat, he pinned my hands by the wrists to the floor, his lips sucked against the flash there, softly at first but harder and harder until his teeth grazed by.

"I'm surprised," he thrust himself deeper into me, "You-" thrust. "-Wanted-" kiss. "-To see-" another thrust. "-me?" A final kiss to my throat before he lifted his head and forced his tongue into my mouth for a second, and when he pulled back, I thought about my answer...

"I wanted..." I freed my hands, ran them up, over his broad and hard muscles shoulders until they ran through the feathery locks of his coal coloured hair. I then tightened my grip. "A distraction,"

I regretted the words the moment they left my lips, the hurt I had inflicted on him had been severe, the wound too deep, and I could see it in his face.

I would never admit it aloud, not even to myself, but I believe a part of me knew that I cared for Mordecai. In what form, I did not yet know, but to care in any way was more than enough. He could not know, however, of my feelings. He could not know, no one could ever know. I did not care for people, I did not...love, it was not who I was. I was devoted to protecting Aro, I always had been and always would be, and in a small way, that frightened me. Not that it mattered, not in that moment, but Kai did have to know exactly where I stood. It was easier to put someone out of their misery than to allow them to continue suffering, correct?

"If that is what you want, then that is what I shall be..." He devoted himself to me entirely, even after what I said.

I almost verbally apologised, but I did not. I did not, and he did not speak a word about it. He loved me too much to confront me on what I had done to him, instead, he just kissed me back and kissed me again, and again, and again all night long. Although I had convinced him of my lack of interest in him romantically on many occasion, I had to wonder, as the minutes turned into hours and hours into days, if it was becoming something much more than that altogether.

* * *

Asher's Note:

Hello Lover Readers. Chapter 11 is here and in this chapter, Isabella returns to her beloved Master, Aro, and already we can feel the tension her secret has aroused. Of course, she also reunited with Kai, whom I adore and they have some sexy fun time. I should apologise, for not putting a slight disclaimer that this chapter would be a little...steamy. I did try to tone it down, but it's hard to do so when writing scenes with Kai. He is certainly an interesting, sexy, character with an interesting background. How do you know someone, who can make you believe anything? Speaking of Kai, I have a very important question for all of you!

Originally, I had intended this story to be from dual point of views. Isabella and Aro. Isabella who is totally oblivious to the truth and Aro, who knows it all, although I decided that this would cause spoilers so I changed my mind and kept the story in Isabella's head. One lovely reader was wondering if I were planning to switch to Kai's POV instead. This was something I had pondered doing but I wanted to know your thoughts and opinions on the matter beforehand. How would you all feel about my switching POV's every now and again. If I did go forward with this, it would switch only for a few short chapters every so often, not consistently, as Isabella's chapters are. Also, if I did change, it would take effect from chapter 13, so it could work with the plot I already have. Please, please, let me know what you think.

P.S. Also let me know what you think of the cover image change. The original was a photo I saw and edited quickly as I was eager to upload the first chapter. Although now I am looking at different images that reflect, on whom this Isabella is.

* * *

Responding to your reviews:

Huntergather: Thank you for reviewing chapter 3 & 9, thank you for reviewing. I am glad you enjoyed.

LRJ: Thank you :] Unfortunately, all chapters must come to an end sometime, ha-ha

Sharksaver23: Thank you :] I also loved the story and would love to see in which new direction she took the saga, ha-ha

Kristie: Thank you for reviewing :] I felt the same with Life and Death, Twilight is always the better version.

Megan: Thank you for posting a review, all reviews mean a lot. As for whether or not this will be a Bella/Edward story, I do not know as of yet. You stated that you would lose respect if Isabella did end up falling for Edward. I am unsure on if you meant you would lose respect for Bella, or respect for me. Loosing respect for Isabella because she falls in love with the man she first loved, seems silly. Loosing respect for me, seems even sillier. I will write my story how I please, of course, I turn to my readers for advice, as I did in my note, but if something's feels right as I am writing it, that is how it will go. If it does not, then it will not happen. Isabella may end up with Edward; she may end up with Kai. Who knows, Isabella is a very independent character, who's to say she needs a love interest? She could be single. If you don't like the way this story turns out, then that's too bad for you, but I hope you do like it.

Hopestreet: Thank you :] I am pleased to hear it.

Macey: Thank you :] I am glad to hear you enjoyed it. You're right, Isabella was much calmer in that chapter and portrayed emotions that are more human that previously seen. As for Edward and Kai meeting, that may come sooner than you think.

Alice: Don't worry about it. I enjoyed that part also, it is kind of dark and twisted, and in the same time, she shows human emotion by waiting to ensure she hadn't killed the old woman. As for Isabella and Kai fun...here you go! The last part of this chapter, ha-ha, and this does indicate that if anything, Isabella is going to have a lot more fun! I agree with you, Midnight Sun was well written yet Beau's voice did not relate in anyway.

~Asher~


	12. Chapter 12

Isabella's POV:

* * *

Kai and I fucked for three days straight, and it was amazing. Our immunity to ailments such as the need to rest, eat, replenish and grow strong, had to be the highest of perks the gift and curse that was immortality granted to us upon our ascension. Free from the binds of a mortal body, our muscles did not cry, nor did our bones ache, and the flaming pit within our souls that burned, fuelled and heated our lust seemed to have no end, and when a time came that we believed we had at last discovered it we would break though past a crust towards a core we were unsure actually existed.

Those three days with Kai confirmed as much.

It had begun on that white fur rug before the roaring blaze of my hearth; he took me there four times before the logs in the fireplace split and the embers fell cold and died, and until I grew bored of being the one to be had, when the fact of the matter was that I, in this world and any other, was more dominant than Kai could ever be. So without fair warning, I took a hold on the muscles of his thigh and hoisted him into the air. Carrying _him_ across my chamber in a blur.

We tore the dividing curtain to shreds as we passed through it, beneath the stone archway, into the bedroom where I literally threw him to the bed and launched myself into the air and atop him, finally finding the comfort of my bed after hours against the stone flags of the floor. It was my turn to make him my bitch, my turn to hold him down and make him cry out my name, my turn to sink my teeth into his shoulder and make him cry out in a pain we both knew he secretly enjoyed.

It was in that room and on that bed that we spent a further seven hours before moving to the bathing chamber, then to the closet, the couch, the stairwell, the balcony and, by sunrise on the second day we had decided to abandon my chambers altogether and soon found ourselves on the roof of the tallest building in Volterra.

On that rooftop, shadowed by the overhanging lip of the terracotta tiles, Kai and I fucked from daybreak till nightfall.

I bore myself, body and soul, to him in those days and hoped, prayed for it to never stop. I had begged Kai for a distraction and a distraction was what I got; a distraction against the faces and memories that plagued my thoughts, that surfaced questions to the mind that ought never to be spoken by word of mouth. He had been so willing to help me, to lift me off my feet, lay me down and battle those demons away – not with swords of words but with his gentle kisses and soft strokes. All whilst under the false impression that he was nothing but a plaything to me, but he cared too deeply, too truly to deny me my freedom.

I hated and loved him for it.

We could have continued forever and would have if it were not for the footsteps approaching from beyond my door.

"If they knock, I'll burn them." He murmured into the tender flesh of my stomach, pressing his lips against my skin over and over and over. I felt the same, yet laughed as knuckles rapped against the door, followed shortly by a fake cough.

"My apologies for the interruption." A flat voice spoke through the wood. I recognized it to be Alec, the less pesky version of his twin sister. Kai had not stopped fucking me in spite of the boy's presence.

"What do you want?" He hissed through clenched teeth.

"Aro wishes to see you, Mordecai, now." Was his only response before he vanished. Kai found his next release only moments later, my nails raked down his back as gasped and dropped his head against my chest. I lay there and ran my fingers through his feathery black locks for minutes.

"I hate to say it but you best leave shortly. Believe me, you do not want Aro to send another messenger." Kai knew this to be true. Aro would punish him for such insubordination, severely, if he rejected the summon. With a growl that shook the building, he kissed my jaw again with burning lips and pulled away. For the first time in days, we lost contact and it kind of hurt.

"Go, run to your master, but know I am not yet finished with you, boy." Crawling across the bed, I rolled my shoulders and arched my back. He glanced my way as I barred my fangs and narrowed my eyes in a way similar to a feral feline beast, we were certainly acting as if we were in heat. Suddenly my mind leapt to the werewolf shifters of the Quileute tribe and I pondered if they were ever in heat? The possibility amused me until it struck me that this was the first time since Kai's first kiss that I had thought of the Cullen's, the shifters – Bella. Kai's numbing and addictive influence was wearing off already.

"I don't want to leave," he exclaimed, as he headed towards my bathing chamber. He was quiet until I heard the shower start, "but our _master_ has summoned me." He finished the word master with mockery, as if he loathed calling him it, or maybe he simply did not believe Aro was our master. A dangerous manoeuvre when rutting the Overseer. But he knew me, knew I would not say anything of his wavering loyalty, especially not when the Cullen's had me questioning my own. "And I am not finished with you either," He said again after a few minutes in the shower as he entered the main room again, he strolled by with the swagger of a man that had been fucking his girl for days on end.

As he moved I took in every detail of his body again. The muscles in his back that rolled as he pulled the towel from around his waist and dried his hair. My eyes drifted to the member between his legs, already fighting back the urge to leap at him. I dragged my eyes up, over the curves of his abs and the firmness of his chest. He reached for a spare black T-shirt he had left here at some point and slid it over his head, the hard swells of his biceps looked tense and solid even if he was applying the gentlest of touch, to the hairs on his legs that somehow seemed fair despite the black pitch of his hair, and do not get me started on his butt.

We did not speak until he had finished buttoning and belting his jeans, lacing up his boots and tying one of the many black cloaks I owned around his throat.

"As much as it pains me to say it, darling, you may have to resort to pleasuring yourself until I return, and I _shall_ return." I had not moved from the bed, and lay there in wait as he bowed and pressed his lips firmly against my forehead; warm and gentle, nothing like the kiss Aro had placed in that same spot days before. Then he was gone. Out of my door and building in the blink of an eye.

Alone. For the first time in days. I sighed aloud to myself and finally rolled off the bed, glancing around my room. Somehow during our little sexcapades, we had managed to destroy half of the furnishings I owned: my bed now a mangled mess of iron and torn sheets, the feather freed from the pillows now crowded around my toes and fluttered with my movements. The leather of the couch scratched and withered, the curtains adorning my balcony doors had been shredded – speaking of my balcony doors, one of them had a split in the wooden frame and the other one of the glass panels built in smashed. I rested my hands on my hips and scowled, mentally noting all I would need to replace, yet I could not bring myself to be mad at Ka, not when I had been the one to cause most of the damage.

The last words he spoke came to mind.

 _You may have to resort to pleasuring yourself until I return_

Touch myself? Ridiculous. I had not touched myself in that way in many years, I had never the need to – nor was I about to start now. I flew to and from my closet, now wrapped tightly in a black chiffon gown. If Kai could not borrow his hands to distract me then another would.

* * *

I pressed my lips to the base of her throat, then again on either nipple as I took in the generous swells of her breasts. I continued my kisses between and further past her navel. Heidi shivered and giggled at the tickling sensation, her high laughter vibrated through her stomach. I ran my fingers up either side of her slender frame, melting inside at the silken texture of her flawless skin.

"Are you ready for round – round whatever?" she asked, "I stopped keeping track after nine." She tittered again and dropped her head back, exposing her throat. I shot up the bed and straddled her waist, the weight of our bodies causing the dark wood to groan. She ought to have discovered by now that iron beds were the way to go when expecting this type of company.

"Actually…" I spoke as I leaned in to taste myself on her lips, "You are beginning to bore me, I think I'll take my leave." Eight hours we had been at it, eight hours and we were close to sunset. Heidi scoffed and playfully shoved me away, yet I had already sprung and now bounded across the room towards her adjoining bathroom. Kai and I had bathed and showered, and fucked during both, yet now bored of sex altogether (until Kai's return) I was in desperate need of a thorough shower.

"Just because you are Aro's hand does not mean that you need to be a crude and emotionless person." She snarled after me with no true anger. My response should not have come to a shock to her, she knew what I was like and after centuries as – what humans would call – friends with benefits, she should have figured it out. I felt very little for her.

Stepping into her built in shower, I turned the metallic know and ducked my head beneath the cold water that burst from the plumbing, gradually turning warm as I smothered my hair with shampoo and covered my body with shower gel. "Emotions make us weak," I finally explained to her as I washed the suds away. Not only did they make us weak, but they made us wonder and question, and change.

I heard the patter of her footsteps, then she appeared leaning against the threshold. I ran my fingers through my hair and untangled the knots that had formed after days of rolling back and forth. "You're too serious," she shook her head as she spoke, "You need to relax, have fun, sister."

I cringed and she noticed. "What?" she pressed.

"How can you call me sister when we've just been fucking not moments ago?"

Heidi rolled her eyes dramatically and turned away saying "It's just a name."

Just a name? A name could mean a lot, I had discovered. I had been called many names in my many years, yet still found it strange whenever my coven mates referred to me as their sister, or when the situation called for me to address one of them as brother or sister. We immortals were unusual in that sense. Sisters, brothers – Aro was our father! Of course we were not biologically related – besides Alec and Jane – yet we still continued to call one another it, even when we fucked for fun. I was thankful Kai shared my views. If he ever once called me his sister, he would find himself on my doorstep and banished from my bed permanently.

Stepping out of the shower, I followed her and towel dried my hair. She slid back onto the bed and flicked her long auburn hair over her shoulder. "I like to refer to you as my sister, just as I do with Jane, and Chelsea, and Amren, and the wives. I refer to the boys as my brothers. "As a human I was born an only child, and my coven mates before I joined the Volturi did not like to think of me as a part of the family, they grew angry with me if I ever named them a sibling."

As I dressed into my gown, I realized that I did not know much of Heidi's coven before she became one of us. I knew that word had reached Aro that an immortal woman lived whose Gift had been irresistible beauty to every man, woman and all that came in-between. Aro desired her, so he got her. I had known that she had coven mates prior to Chelsea's…persuasion, but I knew nothing of whom they were. Not that I cared.

"I cannot blame them. You are horrible to live with." I teased, although it was the truth. Heidi was great for attracting my dinner, and fucking, but other than that the poor idiot was useless. I did not care about her feelings, or her coven mates, but a question popped up I could not refuse to voice. "Did you mourn them? When Aro burned them?"

Forward. Blunt. Brutal.

Honest.

There was a few seconds pause, which I considered to be a long pause, before she replied. "At the time, yes, but that loss passed within a matter of years." Again, Chelsea was to thank for that. Obviously, Chelsea's ability was a secret known to only the trusted few. The waitress was not one of them. "I mourned Hilda, my sire, as she was like a mother to me. She saw I was weak and pathetic, a starving human girl, but she also saw I had potential to do great things if given the opportunity."

Great things? Like I said, waitress.

"But I did not mourn Mary, nor did I mourn Noela as she was only a recent addition to the coven at the time. I did feel the loss of Anne, who considered me as much a sister to her as her actual sister, Victoria."

* * *

One of the worst things about immortality, about our heightened senses specifically, was that we could detect emotions though one another in an instant. A part of me wanted to gasp, to spin on Heidi and demand answers to the hundreds of questions that hit me like concussion. Controlling my facial features and body language was one thing but we immortals had a kind of sixth sense. We could smell emotions on humans, when they were scared, if they were lying, their emotions polluted the air and we could sense the shift in them subtly. Similar to Jasper, although Jasper could feel them on a scale a hundred times stronger, and control them also it would appear. If Heidi at all sensed that I was hiding something, she could blow my secret. I would not have allowed it to get to that. She would have been ashes in the wind before she could have spoken a single word for my fear to the Trio.

From the look on her face she had not detected anything off about me upon hearing her speak the name of the one I had been hunting. I knew that Victoria was an old and popular name in many countries, that probability of it being the same Victoria were slim, but in the back of my mind…I knew. I just knew.

I also knew that I had to be careful, I could not press too deeply. "So they all died?" I asked, "You were the only gifted one, lucky you." I gave a lob-sided half smile to her.

She shook her head. "No, and no I wasn't the only gifted. Victoria – she was gifted."

"She was? Aro did not claim her?" Nothing too risky.

"He had thought about it, but realized that her gift was nothing special to him. She was exceptionally well as escaping death, saving her own ass. She escaped then and is out there somewhere today, I'm guessing." Panic. Panic set in and it spread into terror and horror. Heidi knew Victoria, had been a part of the same damned coven! I pondered telling her that I had killed the very same Victoria, but that would have added another person to the list of those that I had lied too, another loose end to come back and bite me in the ass later. No. I had to keep silent. Keep casual.

"I see." I said after another pause. Heidi did not say anything else on her old coven mates, she begun bugging me to stay and continue "playing."

I simply refused, told her to shower as she smelt of sex and blood, and that maybe I would return sometime soon. Then I left. I left her chambers and closed the door behind me as quickly yet subtly as I could. The moment the wood clicked into place I spun around the corner and shot further down the hall. I ran for a minute until I was deep, deep below ground and away from the living chambers, and as far away from the throne room as I could get. The hall was made of white marble and lit only by the lanterns clinging to the alcoves in the walls. I glanced down the hall, at the two large wooden doors at the end.

I stood in the hall outside of the library. We had a library, of course. One thing most immortals enjoyed doing was reading, learning, advancing and enhancing themselves. So of course we had a library. A large room, perhaps larger even that two of the throne rooms put together, and three stories high too. I had not known why I felt compelled to come here, perhaps a part of me knew that this was the quietest place in all of Volterra. A place where not only could I escape the others, but I could escape myself in books.

If I could not distract myself, calm myself, with sex then I would do it with words. But first…composure. I rested my head and my hands against one wall and took in a deep breath I did not necessarily need. These were not just walls, these were the walls of the place I called home and had done for as long as I could remember. No matter what anyone said, this was my home and I would not, should not, fear it.

Almost ironically, that same sixth sense altered me to another presence in that hall too late. A hand wrapped around my throat and claw like nail dug into my skin.

* * *

Asher's note:

Hello Everyone! It feels so good to be back writing this story! I would like to apologise profusely to everyone who is still reading this story! It had been a long, long time since I updated. I did recently explain in an author's note I just deleted explaining my absence. In short, I received a lot of hate recently (most of which I have deleted from the review section of this story) and it put me in a bum mood, but on top of that, a virus was corrupting my work and I could not access previously written chapters and plotting documents! I managed to get a new computer, but since then losing everything and the hate really made me lose my inspiration to continue this story. Yet, after letting you know and receiving so much love and respect from everyone, I managed to rewrite the next chapter and here it is. The original chapter was more detailed, and was a lot longer, but I decided to split it into this and end it at this short cliff-hanger just so I could get a chapter to you all sooner!

In this chapter, Isabella and Kai reunite and have lots of sexy fun time, and after he is called to Aro for whatever reason, she finds comfort in Heidi who shares some secrets with Isabella. Not too exciting for a returning chapter, but at least it's something! I really hope you enjoy and let me know what you think, hopefully the next chapter will be up this week!

Also, recently (well, in a past chapter) asked you all if you would like to see a chapter from Kai's POV, or Aro's. I thought about it and starred writing them out a while back but decided that I am not going to post them. Instead, later in this story or upon completion, I am going to write an entirely other story on my profile set in this same word, from Kai's POV, set before this story and maybe a little bit after the end of this one! I am excited to write this short story, but that is a little while off yet!

Thank you all so much for your love, support and respect. Many thanks to you all!

* * *

Responding to your reviews:

Hopestreet: The mating bond does exist in my version of this universe, as it exists within the original. Although I believe that in the original, the mating bond only exists on the immortal's side of the relationship, not the humans. So yet, Bella was in love with Edward but he was mated to her, yet I believe she was not truly mated to him until she became one of them. This is just how I saw it, as I always imagined the mating bond between two soul mates (especially in this kind of fiction) to be something more than human, something almost higher than we are capable of feeling as we are. It is my understanding that the mating bond is something humans are not capable of feeling, not until they transition into a vampire. Similar to Imprinting! Ordinary humans cannot imprint, but can be imprinted upon by the Shifters, etc. Does that make sense? Sorry for rambling. I just wanted to explain my views of the mating bond before I actually answered your question. Bella was not mated to Edward before (as she was only human) but now she is immortal who knows? For her, the bond did not click in place upon meeting him as an immortal. Although I will say that the bond will come into play later in this story. Thank you also for what you said, it made my day what you said and I won't stop writing! I also just got something similar for my laptop, saving every I write onto another drive! Thank you for reviewing. :]

Alice: Thank you :] and you are welcome. Reading and responding to reviews – the nice ones – is one of my favourite things about posting new chapters! Like I said in the note above, I am not going to do an Aro or Kai POV in this story. Yet…I have decided to do a short story after completing this one set entirely from Kai's POV and set before the beginning of this story! I'm kind of excited to start! As much as I would like to write Kai and Isabella travelling the world having a good time, now it not the best time for that as Isabella has already made up her mind on what she is going to do next! It sucks you lost what you lost on your hard drive, it's a horrible feeling. You also put it perfectly! Aha. I did find the inspiration and hope to update soon! x

Macey: Thank you! You're right, this Isabella is very stubborn but as we see, she's willing enough to at least return and hear them out. Heck, she was even willing enough to read the letter! If she had retrieved a letter such as that a week before, she would have torn it up and burned it before even finishing the first sentence. Thank you also for what you said regarding those who leave negative reviews. It made me feel a lot better.

Guest #1: From the looks of your review, you don't like Edward. I have yet to make up my mind who Isabella will end up with. You will have to just continue reading and find out.

TheMrsDSalvatore: Thank you for reviewing. Nice name, by the way. At the moment Kai is the better suit and I love him. But…I do not know who she will end up with. I have not decided yet and will do eventually. She may end up single, aha.

Deviant-Rogue: Thank you so much for a long, loving review. I wanted to reply the moment I read your review yet decided to wait until I was ready to post and thank you with another chapter at least! As I said in my note, I have received a lot of hate lately and your review really perked me up! Thank you so much. Very interesting theory! Maybe that's it, maybe it's not. I'll say some parts are true, others not so much. I hope to hear from you in the future! Much love and respect back!

Sullhach: Thank you for reviewing. Very interesting question, one no one has asked yet. If they can change Isabella's memories, then why not simply change Edward and the others? Any vampires? That question will be answered upon in chapter to come! I'm sorry you lost what you did when your computer crashed, it's an awful feeling. Months, if not years of worth being lost. Hollows you out, but I suppose you just have to push through!

Hungergatherer: Thank you so much! :]

OllyOllyOxyCodone; That's a shame. I usually don't respond to reviews as bluntly rude as yours, but believe it or not, it's not the worst I've received. You are only on chapter six, if you had bothered to continue another few chapters you would have discovered that she not only escaped, but almost killed several of them whilst doing so. Also, if you were shocked and angered by her capture, then why did you not bother to read the actual description of this story above where it plainly says "-taken hostage by a coven of golden eyed vampires-" I wish I could care that you lost all desire to continue, but I don't. Thanks for reviewing!

HoHum: Thanks for the review, like I said to the others who got angry and decided to stop reading, if you had bothered to continue reading another few chapters then you too would have discovered that you are WRONG. Thanks!

MysticBird106: Thank you! No single chapter but a whole short story will eventually show up after this one ends! Thank you for also saying what you said, I do realize now that I shouldn't have let them get to me and won't from now on. Who cares what they think, as long as there is one person who enjoys I shall keep writing!

Gjmburgess2000: That is true, thank you so much!

Sharksaver23: I did and here it is! Hope you enjoyed!

Goddess of Dawn: Thank you, here is your update :]

* * *

~Asher~


	13. Chapter 13

~ Isabella's POV ~

* * *

God, I really was talented. Five seconds, five mere mortal seconds was all it took for me to fight free and end the life of whomever had dared to strike me.

In the first second I had not only accepted that I was under attack but that at that moment in time, the attacker had an advantage. Not only had he caught me off guard, distracted by my own traitorous thoughts, but he had managed to get a hand on my throat, perhaps the most vulnerable part of our divine bodies. It had become clear to me then that whomever had dared to lay a finger on me posed a threat to my life and therefore had to be destroyed.

Another second passed and my attacker, whom I had realized was male and immortal, had lifted me clean off my feet with a single heave and slammed me against the wall, the impact causing cracks to spiral outwards. I grabbed either of his arms; his grip held firm. He possessed a strength that surprised even me. Using the milliseconds I had, I evaluated all I could on him; I was positive I had never seen the man before in my life but he had a handsome face, one I would have remembered even as a human. He was handsome, yes, but he appeared…drained. His cheeks sunken and hair greasy, his glowing eyes surrounded by purplish bruises. Whomever he was, he was starving.

A small man with no real muscle mass, not that it mattered when it came to the supernatural strength of our kind, yet I had to wonder why then was he so strong? The answer struck me at the same time his scent did: New-born. He was a new-born. Beyond the appealing, attractive lure there was fresh blood tainted with venom, it lingered in his tissues and ran fresh through his paralysed veins.

A new-born? In Volterra? In my home?

In the third and fourth second I assessed the way he stood, and from the looks of his stance and the way in which his positioned his body, he had no true training in combat. This attack was pure, primal instinct. He pressed the sharp edges of thumbs to the hollow of my throat – I could feel the diamond like skin there beginning to crack beneath the pressure. Realizing that no matter how hard I hit his inner elbows he would not give, I decided on an alternate way of breaking his hold on me. Instead, I brought my arms up between his and wrapped my hands around the back of his smooth neck. I placed one foot flat against the wall and with all my might, pushed. His hands, presumably yelling at him in agony, loosened on my throat; my shove off from the wall had shocked him and before he had time to consider another move, I slammed my forehead against his and his neck snapped back as he hit the far wall.

He glanced my way and swung with an obvious move. In a way I felt sorry for him, the poor thing had no real chance at all now his hold on me had been broken. I ducked beneath his arm, bounced up until our faces were inches apart and I lunged. I straddled him with legs wrapped tightly around his waist, my hands pinning his arms to his side so tightly that his wrists crunched into rubble beneath my fingertips and then my mouth found his neck. A single bite, a snap and I'd snatched away his new life before it had a chance to truly begin.

By the fifth and last second, I stood straight with his head in my hands as the rest of his body crumpled under his weight to the floor. I spat out the chunks of him I'd taken a bite out of and they landed on the tiled floor like shards of broken glass. I glanced down into those eyes that still shone with life, and would do until I rendered him to ash and he would meet a true death.

I dropped his head and it bounced away.

Taking in a step back I took in a long breath, if only to gather a sense of the atmosphere in the corridor, to taste the panic he felt as he died on my tongue. A hundred thoughts rushed to the front of my mind: _Who was this newborn? Why had I not recognised his face? Who sired him? How had he gotten down here in the first place without detection? Unless he was supposed to be down here? Then why-_

My train of thought derailed by a giggle from the end of the hall, followed my three short claps. My head snapped up, eyes narrowing and I barred my teeth at the girl who approached. "Well done. For a moment there, I thought he had you." She emerged from the shadows, clad in black robes that swallowed her tiny frame whole, save for her petit face and fair hair.

"Jane…" I snarled in response. To an outsider it would appear as if I were a crazed lunatic, growling at would appear to be a girl barely into her adolescent years. She wore the body of a child, yet it was apparent to anyone that no innocence resides within her. My eyes wide with rage burrowed into her calm, almost bored ones in return. She smiled.

How dare she. How dare she not only crack a smile at the possibility of my death but for her to also consider my losing an actual possibility. Ignoring her first comment, I beckoned to the severed head at my feet. "What's the meaning of this?" again, she just offered a smile. I vowed then and there I would one-day tear that smile from her smug little face. From deep within, I summoned a feral snarl that reverberated throughout the emptiness of the hall. "Answer me!"

She would not dare ignore me, not if she knew what was good for her.

It was no secret among the guard – or the masters, the wives…anyone, really – that Jane and I loathed one another. _Loathed._ In every sense of the word. She had desired my job from the moment of her transformation, since that rueful day she and Alec were saved from being burned alive by their townsfolk for the crime of witchcraft. She had an almost eerie obsession with Aro from that day on, the unquenchable urge to please and worship him, and God's forbid he dare show affection to another. In her deranged little mind, there could be only one favourite and she wanted to be it.

Yet this was reality, not the fabricated fantasy of a love-struck child. Not whilst I was around, and whether she liked it or not, I was her superior. By Aro's word, his law, she had to obey me or suffer the consequences and, when it came to Jane, they would be severe.

She finally dragged her eyes down to the body of the new-born, obvious boredom in her eyes. "A mistake, it would seem." She sighed.

A thought occurred as she spoke. "Did you send him after me? Is this your attempt at my life?"

She scoffed and circled the body, circled me. "Please, Isabella, do not insult me. If I were to make an attempt on your life I would not resort to such sloppy, desperate methods such as sending a new-born."

"Explain."

"A human slave, one Aro had come to believe would possess a Gift upon becoming one of us. He was wrong. I was sent to handle this issue but it would appear you have done my job for me."

"Is that so?"

She nodded once.

"I don't believe it."

To turn one of our humans was not something the Trio did lightly. Usually, Aro would consult with me first, these new-borns were to become a part of my guard after all. He would want for me to deem them an appropriate addition to our family before he even actually considered the bite. What Jane was saying, that not only had Aro found a human he deemed worthy enough in the four days I had been absent from my position, but that he had turned them without at least mentioning it to me before hand, seemed utterly ridiculous. An absurd fabrication.

Aro would not disrespect me like this.

It would appear that my response angered her, as her own was sharp and heated. "If that is the case then I suggest you take it up with Aro. I am sure he would be interested to hear why you of all people are questioning his motives and decisions." The growl behind those words was not as subtle as she wanted to make it.

"Perhaps I shall, when I return to my position." The air between us put me on edge, raised the hairs on the back of my neck. I wondered how often Jane attempted to use her ability on me and failed, just on the miraculous off chance it would work. I had felt her trying before, felt the rush of mind on the walls of my own as she so desperately tried to burn her way in.

I glanced down at the body once more but only now did I notice something human about him, a silver wedding band on his finger. "You can clean up your own mess." I flew past her down the hall and into the library. I stood on the other side of the large, wooden doors and grasped onto the brass handles tight enough to disfigure the shape. That child, that _Demon –_ I didn't believe a single word of it. Not that Aro had turned a slave without consulting me, especially not a recent addition to the humans. As I pushed away from the doors and headed further into the library, I thought about what Jane had called them.

Slaves.

She was not wrong.

I turned Around a corner and found myself in the centre of the library, a large, circular space filled with chairs and sofas, a place to rest and read in this labyrinth of tomes. I had been lucky enough to visit many libraries in my time, some of which were nothing more than a singular room of a dozen tattered hand-me-down books, others were enormous stone buildings, floors upon floors of expensive ancient texts such as the Library of Congress or the British Library.

They paled in comparison to the hidden library beneath the city of Volterra.

It was true that they may have been grander in size and may have even held more books, but that mattered not when it came to the knowledge we held secret. I was on the middle floor, a large balcony to the left overlooked the floor below and another balcony above overlooked this one. Each floor decorated with the most expensive furnishings; ancient bookcases of intricate design, antiques considered old even by our standards and a million books to behold.

There were books on anything and everything you could possibility imagine, books written millennia ago in languages so few spoke, some written in languages so few had ever heard of – yet not a single book held the answers I sought. Page after page, book after book, shelf after shelf – all for naught. There were no references to immortals with Golden Eyes, or alteration in appearance and eye colour depending on diet, nothing on the Quileute Shape-shifters either. Of course there were tales on the Children of the Moon and the white haired ghost that had come in the night to slay them into extinction (It was not hard to guess whom that was)

Truthfully, I hadn't a clue what I had expected when entering the library. At first, it had been an escape from the thought of running into another who could tell – through sense or by simply seeing the lie on my face – that I was holding something. That I, leader of their Guard, was doubting my loyalty to my sire and the coven I had vowed eternity to. Then it had been to escape Jane and her almost knowing glare, that malicious smile was enough to put anyone on edge. Once through those doors I had wondered if any of the books before me could held some light on my situation, answer at least a few of my questions but none had.

I had known that only the books written by our kind could have held any true answers, but even those seemed to deny the existence of Golden Eyed Immortals. A thought occurred to me then. What if Aro had destroyed any trace of the Cullen's? Any trace of yellow eyes, shape shifters, the entire situation.

If I were in his place, and if what the Cullen's said to be the truth, then I would certainly destroy anything that could potentially arouse suspicion. He was a clever man.

Feeling defeated, in every possible way, I left the library and returned to my chambers. Lost. Confused. Betrayed.

Scared.

* * *

A week later and things had not changed, if anything they just got worse.

I had not returned to my position as Overseer, and did not plan to anytime soon. I could not go back to standing by Aro's throne for hours on end as he dealt with whatever matters he had, whether that be dealing with insubordinate immortals or planning to 'convince' a gifted vampire to join our loving home. I could not stand by his side and force on a smile; Aro would have known, would have been able to sense the lie lingering in the space between us.

Still, I had to put up a façade and continue to play a character I had once been, continue to smile at my coven mates and ignore the humans desperate for attention from their Gods. If I passed Dimitri in the courtyard I would banter with him, and whenever he made a sexist remark I would retort in my usual witty manner.

I had returned to the library several times that week and went over books I had read a dozen times over, just on the off chance that the words on the page would be different and help me figure out how my life got so fucked up and when it became so difficult to be myself.

Another unanswered question surfaced suddenly one day: why had the Cullen's made no move? They had known of whom I was and believed me to be another. If they were so intent to find and rescue their 'Bella' then why had they not contacted me? Why had they not made the journey to Volterra themselves to confront Aro on why Edward's supposedly deceased human mate was living a lie as Isabella, Aro's most dangerous daughter?

And with the lack of answers came an onslaught of crippling anxiety, it made it impossible to enjoy…anything. I had even turned away Kai when he had slid his hand down the back of my pants. That was when I knew something had to be done, immediately.

* * *

In the darkness of my chambers I lay, sprawled out across my antique chaise lounge, draped in only a single white cotton sheet. Every electric light had been switched off, the candles extinguished; the only light came from the hearth, the flickering flames casting shadows across my naked form.

Kai sat across from me but his face was hidden behind a canvas atop an easel; for any other artist such dim light would make it near impossible to work but Kai somehow found it comforting. Sketching me was something he had done since the beginning and was maybe the only thing I had been willing to do for him – besides sexual favours, of course. I had never understood why, never truly knew why being drawn lifted my spirits but it did. Maybe it was knowing I could expose myself to someone in an intimate way without having to fuck them, something that sounded boring but would change my opinions upon experiencing it myself.

I had been frozen in that same position for over an hour, not speaking, moving – I did not even blink. Somehow just listening to the sounds of the burning lumps of coal and the charcoal as he dragged it across the page was enough to entertain me. He craned his neck to the side to look at me and I smiled at his look, the way his bit his plump lower lip when taking in the finer details. Alone in this room, with him, made me feel like old times; it reminded me of who I used to be before I left for my trip a fortnight ago. When things were simpler. These days I loathed every second without him by my side, addicted to him as if he had become a drug, and without that drug I would begin suffering withdrawal symptoms.

After another half an hour he held the paper at arm's length, assessing the finished result. The look on his face was…indifferent, to say the least.

"What's wrong?" I spoke for the first time since he had begun.

"She's not right." He sighed as he flipped the canvas around and I saw her. I really was stunning. The feline shape of my eyes, adding to the femininity of my otherwise boring brows, a shade lighter than the long cascade of hair that fell over and between the swells of my breasts. He leaned over the drawing again, sighing as he used his thumb to smudge the charcoal shading of my bottom lip.

"What do you mean, she's an exquisite beauty. Michelangelo himself would be proud." I teased, sitting up and crossing my legs. "Don't I look like one of your French girls, Jack?" He flipped the canvas back and shook his head, after a long pause he looked up and his soft eyes met mine. How could his eyes be blood red and soft at the same time?

"It doesn't matter how many times I sketch you, I never seem to capture the true essence of your beauty."

My heart almost started to beat. "Ugh, don't get all mushy on me." I joked, shoving at his shoulder lightly as I passed, when in fact the sentence had driven a stake into my heart and I craved the pain. He shrugged at my response and I thought how it was such an ordinary, human reaction, and I liked it. Instead of heading towards the bed I stopped behind him and ran my hands over his smooth shoulders and leaned down until my fingers ran through the tuffs of chest hair between his pectorals.

"You truly are a talented artist, Kai." The compliment felt strange on my tongue, and I could sense the confusion radiating from him. I had never complimented him aloud with such...such honesty. No sarcasm, no jokes, just a simple compliment. It pained me to see just how surprised he was. Had he always believed me to be as cold-hearted as I appeared? Had it taken my run in with the Cullen's to thaw this frozen heart.

"Thank you." He titled his cheek into my hand and kissed it. As I leaned down to press my lips to his he seemed to hum in response before he actually spoke.

"I've got to go."

"Go?" The word tore away any happiness I had.

"I have a meeting with Aro shortly." I understood now why he was hesitant to tell me. He rose from the chair and strode across my chambers to light several candles. His butt cheeks looked so cushiony in the firelight. Of course he was naked, if I was getting naked for any reason then so was he, if only to please me. But even his plump behind could not distract me from my anger.

"He's called on you a lot recently, and now you and he are arranging meetings now? What next? Employee of the month?" I was only half joking. We lived a simple life, we did what we wished within the walls of our home, we were only expected to "work" for lack of a better term, whenever Aro had need of us. Of course, we had things to do in the meantime such as hunting new-borns, scouting for new recruits, ensuring our masters were safe to name but a few of our jobs, but when the days were simple and calm we had very few responsibilities. I couldn't help wonder why Kai was being summoned more than usual, and I couldn't help but wonder if it were because I was no longer spending my days by Aro's side.

As he slid on a white polo-shirt, he gave me a look. A look to express his mutual feelings.

"He has, but he has his reasons, you know this." I did know it, but it did not mean I was pleased about it. He slid on his trousers, socks and suave, polished shoes.

"What does he want of you?" I asked as I crossed my arms and leaned against a column. He rose from the seat and crossed the room, closing the space between us in the blink of an eye. He rested one muscular arm on the column above my head whilst he leaned down, cupping my cheek with his other.

"If I told you, I would have to kill you."

His breath was like cologne. Sweet, hot, intoxicating. I craved more. "Lucky for you, I'm already dead." He laughed at this and his laugh made me laugh too. Kai's head snapped up and he took a step back, his arms gripping my own tightly as he stared me dead in the face with an expression I couldn't name.

"What?"

"I – I think that's the first time I've ever heard you laugh…"

Neither one of us dared to speak, instead he just kissed me, this time it felt different, felt as if his lips were always supposed to be mine. After an eternity, he pulled back and pressed his forehead to my own. "I'll see you soon, okay?"

"Okay."

Then he left.

 _What was that?_

The moment I heard him through the balcony doors, crossing the courtyard and entering the clock tower, I gave in and let out a heavy breath as I grabbed two handfuls of hair and spun on the spot to face the sketch he had made of me, remembering every inch of his body. He had made me laugh, and it had been so natural and felt so right. If anything made sense in this world anymore, it was him.

* * *

Minutes later I entered the bathroom and by chance happened to look up at my reflection, finding myself startled by it. Kai had been kind to me. The drawing had been stunning, when in reality I looked skinnier, unhealthily so, and the colour of my skin a ghostly, sickly grey. My cheeks were sunken, cheek bones sharper but not in flattering, sexy sense. I leaned in close but could only detect the slightest hint of burgundy within the obsidian orbs that had become my eyes. How he had been able to see me as beautiful when I looked like this, I did not know.

I realized in that moment that it had been over a fortnight since I had last fed and along with this realization came a dry burn in my throat. I lifted my delicate hand and rubbed the skin there, feeling the need to cough but I knew the sensation would not lessen until my hunt. With Kai off attending to Aro's errands, I realized that I had nothing to do. A perfect opportunity to hunt, and the thought of escaping the walls of the city – which was beginning to feel more like prison with each passing day – filled me with a strange glee.

I dressed in appropriate hunting attire (which consisted of tight, cotton bottoms, a sleeveless tank top – both of which were pitch black) and I reached for some shoes before changing my mind and deciding to go barefoot. I liked to run barefoot. It was not as if I could damage my feet. The ground beneath me felt like satin no matter the texture. I tied my hair back before heading out of my chambers.

Luckily my building had a basement with access to the underground tunnels we immortals used to travel through the city during the scorching day. I used these tunnels to weave my way out of the city and before I knew it I was crawling up out of a grate and stood by the entrance to one of the many grand forests that surrounded our city. I kicked up off the ground and landed on the highest branch of a tall tree, my feet planted firmly upon the bark. I glanced up and jumped.

I leapt from branch to branch, tree to tree until finally I was deep enough into the forest I did not have to fear being caught in the sunlight. So I leapt down and the ground came to meet me. The moment I hit the earth, I set off running, closing my eyes to enjoy the sensation of the sun on my face, not caring that I looked like girl on fire.

I ran, I ran for an hour north towards a farther town, not necessarily the closest but I knew Aro's rules on feeding within the city and close by, I liked to be especially sure, even now. The city – and some unfortunate soul who would become my first kill of the night – was approximately forty minutes away when something shifted.

As I moved almost absent-mindedly through the mass of green forest and gold of the sunlight, the breeze shifted in direction and brought with it a scent that pulled me from my dream haze and snapped my senses into the harshness of reality. I unwillingly drifted with it and altered my course, running now down a steep incline on a different route than the one I had started on. I had known what the scent was and what it belonged to, but something was different this time.

A curiosity.

As I approached the small lake my back instinctively arched low, my face hidden among the ferns. I only intended to peek but upon seeing her I found I could not turn away. A doe, a fallow doe in fact. She inched closer to the stream, her tongue lapping up large mouthfuls of the cool water. I focused on the details of her body, each sand coloured hair, the depth of her large black eyes, the way in which the sunlight streaming down through the treetops made the snowy spots on her hind glow.

Then I focused on the warmth of her shaggy neck where the blood pulsed strongest. I could feel the venom swell in my mouth, the ground beneath me succumbed to my claws, the huntress waiting to be unleashed – but then an image came to mind and it rescued me from making a huge mistake. The image of the Cullen's all standing there in the middle of the road back in Forks, my first reaction to seeing this golden eyes and later discovering it was their diet. If I had given in to that wonder, I would have returned home with my beautiful red eyes diluted to an amber-like orange. Then they would all know, not that I had so many secrets but that I had discovered one them.

With an intentional snarl to scare the doe away, I bounced upright and bolted back into the trees. I ran without any coherent thoughts, no actual words, nothing but the images before my eye and the smell of the forest to guide me onwards. I ran another twenty minutes until I was suddenly aware I was being followed. One moment there was nothing but the animals and the trees and the silence and me, the monster charging through it all, then the next I was not alone. Whomever they were, they had managed to follow me unknowingly up until this point but they had made a mistake, one step too many, one ruffle of fabric they should have been more careful to hide.

I stopped so suddenly I skidded in the dirt that enveloped the air around me. I spun on the spot and faced them.

"Who are you!" I roared so loudly the critters set off bounding and the birds scattered into the air.

"Calm yourself, love, it's me."

"Kai?" Sure enough, Mordecai stepped out from behind a tree a hundred and fifty yards ahead. He wore the same clothes he had slipped on in my chambers, looking just as he had an hour ago. He offered me a lob-sided grin. "What are you doing here? Are – Are you following me?"

I stormed closer to him, confused. He did not answer. "Yes, I know how much you hate to be followed but yes, I am."

"Why? I thought you had a meeting with Aro?" He stopped about ten paces ahead and because he did, I did too. Something was going on.

"I do, it starts shortly but…I saw you headed out from one of the watchtowers and thought this might be a chance for us to…talk."

"Talk? You followed me on my hunt because you wanted to talk?"

"What were you doing with that deer?" He changed the subject suddenly. If I were human I might have blushed with embarrassment. So much for being the best. I could not even sense when I was being watched. I was in drastic need of blood, of the surge of energy and life it granted.

"Nothing, I was just watching." I excused myself. Taking a moment to appreciate natures beauty and whatnot, right?

"What's happening with you?" I had no anticipated such a blunt response.

"I'm sure I don't know what you mean." I did. In a way. I turned and started to slowly continue down the dirt path.

"Let's cut the bullshit, Isabella and be honest with one another for once." At this, I spun to face him. A part of me had to be sure I really speaking to Kai, the same man who had made me laugh not an hour ago.

"Excuse me?"

"You're…. different. I knew the moment I saw you the night of your return. Something had happened to you while you were away, I don't know what but it changed you. You…you're feeling things you haven't felt in a long time, I can sense the emotion, see them in your eyes! You don't feel the need to kill, you don't find joy in it. You…you smile at me, you compliment me. I made you laugh today, Isabella," He dropped his hands to his sides exhaustingly, "And now I catch you…preparing to feed from a doe?"

"That was nothing, that's all nothing. You're angry at me for finally paying attention to you?" I needed to change the subject from the doe… but to what, the alternatives were not exactly favourable.

"No…. I love it, I love it, Isabella. But it's not you. Something's changed..."

"You're being ridiculous, Kai, perhaps you ought to be the one taking time off;" I had no control over the sharpness of my voice. I suppose that defensive part of me overwhelmed the part of me that wanted to tell the truth.

"Don't. Don't lie, don't joke. You're making light of-"

"I'm not listening to this any further," I set off running, unable to listen to a single word more.

" _Bella!_ "

Except that one.

"I, I'm sorry!" He exclaimed. "I shouldn't have called you that, I know you don't like that name. It's just – you weren't listening to me and -"

It was as if the space between us vanished or had never existed. An inch apart; I balled my hands into fists.

"You don't call me that! You don't _ever_ call me that!" Not him.

The next words we spoke to one another changed everything.

At long last, he said the words…. "You know." Not a question, a statement. A fact.

I loosened those fists involuntarily. The soft change of his tone bending my body to his will. But the words that then left my mouth were all my own.

"I know."

And it was done. I have said it before that the sheer influence of words could alter the course of your life – or entire existence, in my case – in an instant. More powerful than any supernatural gift, more dangerous than any weapon. Whatever Kai and I had, whatever had been developing between us since the day I met him, was suddenly different and would perhaps never be the same again. I knew it, he knew it.

Now what?

"I think it's about time I got some fucking answers." Fear blending into anger. Kai took a step back but nodded.

"You deserve to know everything, and I want to tell you but-"

"Shut up," I butted in, my enhanced hearing picking up on the sound a second before his did. "Someone's coming." Footsteps, two pairs of them and approaching from the north fast. I risked another glance at Kai before turning to face whomever it was. Surprisingly we came face to face with two members of my guard, Dimitri and Felix.

"Isabella," Dimitri beamed, winking at me as he came to a steady walk and strolled over. He would flirt but not dare make any risky remark, not whilst Kai was around. "You look beautiful, even when you're hungry." Jokes. A joke he would not have made if he had heard the life-changing words Kai and I had spoken to one another mere seconds before their arrival.

"Dimitri? Felix? What are you two doing here?"

"We were sent to fetch Kai. Aro witnessed him follow you into the forest from the clock tower window, he wondered as to why you were leaving the city grounds when you and he have issues to attend to." Felix spoke, his eyes lingering not on Kai but on me. I was certain from Felix's response that they had not been within listening rage but it was as if he could feel the tension in the air.

"Don't fret, I did not forget Aro's meeting. I was merely in a rather hungry mood of my own," Kai turned to me and his eyes ran up and down my body, pausing to admire my breasts in this tank top. "And hoped to have some fun with my Isabella under the sun beforehand. It would appear we are out of time," A show, an act and excuse as to explain why he had followed me. I understood straight away why he was doing this and I knew I had to play along.

Sauntering my way over to Kai, I draped an arm over his shoulder and let out an obviously disappointed sigh. "Thanks, boys, cockblock much?" Dimitri went rigid, probably imagining watching the scenario play out whilst Felix looked awkward.

"Our apologies, Aro wanted to be sure." I realized then that if Aro had seen Kai following me, then he must have seen me outside the city. I had more than likely been looking straight at him without realizing. A current of discomfort ran through my entire body and made me want to shiver.

"Let us run." Dimitri said and he and Felix set off running back towards the city.

"Go, hunt." Kai took my hands and kissed them, a silent plead to forgive him for…I did not even know the extent of his betrayal.

"Not a chance," I whispered low enough the others ahead would not hear. Then I set off charging after my men, followed a moment later by Kai.

* * *

It was almost sunset but enough daylight remained in the pinkish sky to cause our skin to shimmer and stand out, therefore we entered the city through the same grate I had escaped through. Silently, we ducked into the tunnels and made our way back into the heart of the city. All the way, Kai kept offering me apologetic looks, as if he wanted nothing more than to explain everything to me, but I did not look back at him.

I had come to understand that no matter the truth, Kai had lied to me. He knew, he knew everything and had kept it from me for gods knows how long. How could he claim to care for me, then lie to me about who I was?

Within a matter of minutes, we were in the clock tower and walking down the marble hall toward the throne room, two other lower ranking guards had taken Dimitri and Felix's places standing guard outside the doors. I realized that Aro had sent them because they were perhaps the strongest besides myself and Kai. He had taken no risks.

"The Masters are not yet here; I'll call for Aro." Dimitri said and Felix nodded following his brother. The moment they were around the corner I turned to the lower ranking guards, whose names were Makala & Thomason.

"Leave, now." The two were not important enough to question me. They fled within seconds. The moment they were gone I spun on Kai and grabbed him by the throat.

"Isabella!" I slammed him against the wall, my clenched teeth barred.

"Tell me the truth!" I snarled. Then his expression shifted into one I had never seen him display to me before: anger. Kai shoved me so fiercely and suddenly that I had not anticipated the move. I stumbled backwards, my mouth hanging open into a little 'O' of shock. Not that he had shoved me, I didn't care about that, it was that he was brave enough to do it. It kind of turned me on.

"How about you tell me the truth, Isabella, I'll confess my truth when you confess yours!"

"And what truth is that, I wonder?"

We both turned to see Aro stood at the end of the hall with Dimitri and Felix on either side, Renata and two other guards flanking them. Aro's eyes were wide, locked onto me until he slowly pulled them to Kai. His hands clasped together, his stance straight and proper.

"What truth?" He said in a deeper voice. A demand.

Kai was not looking at Aro, he was looking at me. His white shirt was a little dirty and ruffled by my hands, his dishevelled black locks hung messily atop his head. "The truth that Isabella is in love with me." The words silenced and stunned me.

The look in my masters' eyes softened and I knew then all was not lost, he had fallen for what Kai was saying. This was a squabble between lovers, is all.

"Ah – it would appear we have walked in on a private moment." His voice was back to its usual high, an indication that the truth in which Kai had confessed was not something he had guessed, but wanted to act as if it were disrespectful for them to listen in. "Perhaps it is best for the two of you to continue this conversation later?" He suggested as he approached, laying a hand on both of our shoulders, intending to give us comfort but it only made me want to lunge for him.

"That's probably best." I finally spoke. I had to choose my words carefully, my facial expressions. I could not portray the millions of emotions I felt.

The guard stepped into the throne room, leaving Dimitri and Felix to hold open the door for their master. Kai gave me one last, desperate look before biting his lip and heading into the throne room, leaving me behind willingly. I went to follow but Aro stepped before me and held up a hand.

"Oh no, Isabella, you are having time off. You were on your hunt, were you not? Go, hunt. Don't take this the wrong way, my dear, but you are in dire need of it." I forced myself to smile but did not meet his eyes.

"Yes, excellent idea, master." I leaned in so he could kiss my cheek and then when I looked up they were closing the doors. The last thing I saw was Kai's eyes.

* * *

I sat in what had once been my chambers, but now all that remained was the remnants of a home.

The moment I had left the clock tower I'd returned home only to smash through my door and send the broken wooden beams sliding across the ground. I'd charged around, nothing but a blur of black and white as I lashed out and destroyed anything and everything. My bed mangled and malformed, every sheet torn and pillow featherless. I'd torn at the cushions of my couch and thrown burning logs across the distance of the room, not caring that I'd set alight many of my priceless items of clothing. Of which I had also shredded with my claws. Lost treasures were destroyed, diamonds crunched beneath my feet, billions of dollars' worth gone. My bathtub broken, the pipes spilling water across the tiles that now leaked into the bedroom, past the shards of broken mirror.

The mirror had been the first thing to go. The moment I saw my reflection I lashed out, yelling at her and hating every inch of her face. Bella's face. I hated her, I hated her so much. She was _not_ me. I was _not_ her!

When there was nothing else to destroy and my rampage had come to an end, I'd slumped back against the wall and slid to the ground. I sat there and cried tearless sobs. There was no denying it anymore. No point in denying the truth when it had been so plainly laid out before me, in the kiss Edward have given me, in the heartfelt stories the Cullen's had told me, the terrified look Aro had when overhearing our conversation, but most of all in the words Kai had spoken.

 _You know._

I did know. I knew, and I believed it. It hurt, it hurt so excruciatingly that I'd collapsed to my knees and didn't know if I were capable of getting up. I looked up towards the hole in the wall where my door had been, waiting, as if Aro were to turn the corner any second and the man I had called master – father – for a millennia would burn me alive.

I scoffed. But that was the thing. I hadn't called him master for millennia. I had called him master for a mere two years, based on what the Cullen's said. Two _years?_

I believed it, but that did not make it any easier. A lie. All I was, was a lie. A character created by Aro and summoned into this world, given life like Frankenstein, by Kai. I wondered why Bella had lowered her shield? Why had she willingly allowed herself to die and for me to be born?

Too many questions, too, too many thoughts and each more painful than the last.

I laughed when I realized I was having a break down, a mid-life crisis. I guessed I had been correct when wondering, that night on the road with Edward, if immortals could suffer mental illness. I was one. I did not focus on any one thought or memory, not falling for the tricks and lies that had been woven together to make me. I allowed myself to spill out unto the world until I was nothing but an empty, hollow shell. Until I was numb. It still wasn't enough. Then a thought passed through that captured my attention and I clung to it, expanding it. Again, two words. _Now what?_

A sincere question. I knew. I knew that I was not the infamous and deadly Isabella, my name did not spread fear across the land, nor did it have any meaning to anyone but myself. I had been Bella Swan. Human, fragile, boring. Dead.

 _You were her. Now, you are Isabella_. I may have only been created two years ago, my memories may have been false lies, but I had the knowledge. I had a thousand years' worth of memories in my head. I spoke a hundred languages, knew every martial art form there was. I may not have slaughtered countless new-born and enemies in reality but they had lived and died by my hand in my head. In a world where I was that assassin.

I may not have been born this way, but it was who I had become.

Whether they realized it or not, they had created something truly… dangerous. Bella Swan was dead. Isabella was alive. Why did it matter that they had once been the same person? They were not no longer nor would they ever be again. I had to focus on who I was now, not who I had been, and more importantly what happens next.

Then the world stopped spinning and I knew what I had to do. I was leaving it behind. Aro, Kai, Volterra. My home.

Tonight.

And I was not coming back.

* * *

Asher's note:

Hello Everyone! Chapter thirteen here for you! It's a long one, which you may love or hate. A lot happens in this chapter, there's a lot of confusing things and overwhelming emotion. Isabella is attacked by a newborn she does not recognise and Jane is making up stories about where they come from. Kai has been spending more and more time with Aro in secret, doing something Isabella does not know of. Isabella herself is torn apart in this chapter. On one hand she's suffering through the crippling anxiety of being exposed to Aro, she's plagued with unanswered questions, and on the other she is beginning to feel more human emotion than she ever has. She's caring more for Kai and humans in general, she smiles and even laughs. In the end, she finally gets the verification she needed and has finally accepted that she is nothing but a character Aro made up.

Please review and let me know what you think, I apologise for any spelling and grammatical mistakes as I am editing and uploading this late at night! Thanks for reviewing!

* * *

Responding to your reviews:

LR: Thank you, here is the next chapter and hopefully I'll post the next sometime soon!

Goldielover: I was not an Edward fan either, but did prefer him over Jacob in the end. Like I say to everyone who wonders who she'll end up with, I haven't yet decided as it changes every chapter for me. In this chapter, I was very much focused on the relationship between Isabella and Kai.

Clearwater: I do not understand if it is a glitch on my end, but there are no words on your review. It comes up with your name but there are no words…awkward.

Alice: Thank you so much! I was happy too, glad to be back in the writing zone! Really long chapter here, hope you enjoy! I also hope you enjoy the side story from Kai's POV. I've started plotting out and writing little bits but I am at the moment so excited about the cover art I have for it. It's very similar to how I imagine Kai. Still, that is a while off unfortunately.

Macey: Thank you so much! Your reviews always make me smile.

Hopestreet: I agree, the attack at the end of last chapter and beginning of this one isn't a huge part of the story but it does fit into a later chapter. I wonder if anyone will realize when it does. From the end of this chapter, Isabella will be on her way back to Forks soon!

RoxyRoxas1313: That's a shame, but once again who knows what will happen with Isabella. She could go either way! Kai, Edward or single. She may even…die! Aha. I joke. Or do I? You'll see. 'Fuck them and leave no strings attached' is very much Isabella's way, or was, depending on how you perceive this chapter.

* * *

~Asher~


	14. Chapter 14

~ Isabella's POV ~

* * *

I had to move. Now.

Bouncing to my feet, I soared across the room and into my closet. I threw myself to my knees and reached into the back where I found a large black duffel bag I had not used in a decade. I yanked on the zipper, careful not to tear it off, then begun packing away whatever items of clothing my tantrum had left undamaged – which wasn't much. As I sorted through the hangers and drawers, I could not help but feel nostalgic at what I found. I had lived many lives of luxury; in the past my wardrobes had been filled with the finest of materials and fabrics available at the time, and with each passing century came new and unique styles of fashion to obsess over. Full to the rim with gowns and dresses, corsets and petticoats, stockings and heels, only there as the period deemed it inappropriate for a lady to wear anything other.

These days my wardrobe consisted mostly of ridiculously expensive attires…except all in black. Not that it mattered anymore what I wore. I was no longer a part of the Volturi, I would not wear our robes or sigil again. I set the bag down on the desktop then turned towards my vintage vanity mirror; I knocked aside the bench which was already missing a leg and emptied the built in drawers. I had destroyed most of the jewels my wardrobe held yet I had plenty hidden away here. I lifted handfuls of priceless accessories into the bag: necklaces, rings, bracelets, anklets, earrings, and all made up of diamonds and rubies, emeralds and topaz and crystal; I even owned a tiara or two. I had kept them all for the sake of keeping them, because of their beauty, and although I still considered them to be glamourous, I took them now only for their value. Even though I had thrown at least a million dollars in cash rolls in there, I needed to ensure that I'd have an alternate way off attaining money should anything go awry.

Deciding that I had enough in riches to last me at least another two centuries, I stormed into my bedroom in search of the second most important thing I would need: an identity. I pulled a briefcase out from beneath my mattress and flipped it open to reveal a dozen of illegal documents I had been supplied in the past twenty years. Outstanding forgeries of birth certificates, passports, driving licenses; each donning a different name. I scooped them up and dropped them into the bag. I had packed the essentials but found myself scanning my chambers for anything else I might have needed. I spared a few seconds to fill up the last of the space with a few books, photographs and several spare cell phones but other than that, there was no reason to remaining standing there.

I pulled a cloak on just to disguise the attire I wore (I had not changed out of my hunting gear) then lifted the hood to shroud my face. I threw the strap over my shoulder and headed for the broken entryway, but I felt something. It was as if I had forgotten something and whatever it was screamed at me not to leave without taking it, and then I spotted it. There beneath the broken desk chair was the sketch Kai had done of me earlier that same day. The parchment was creased and the edge damp with water from the broken plumbing, but I could not bring myself to leave it behind. I rolled it up and slid it into the bag too.

These rooms, these walls, belonged to me. Hundreds of memories were made in these rooms, perhaps not real memories, but memories all the same. That bathroom was where I washed off the blood, dirt and regret of my first hunt, back then it had been nothing more than cold water in a tin bucket, but still that memory served as one of the more powerful. That balcony was where I had stood to watch a meteor shower pass hundreds of years ago, I distinctly remembered thinking how beautiful they looked, how I thought of the hundreds of children that would look up to the skies above and wish and dream. It had been in that bedroom that Kai and I first made love, where I had at last allowed his fingers touch to me, allowed his lips to press against my own, willed for him to be inside me.

It may have been intended as some form of imprisonment, but to me it had come to feel like home. Content I had all I desperately needed, I lay a hand on the stone threshold one last time, let out an exasperated sigh and left.

I decided that I had wasted enough time already – funny, how time had become a concept in which I was familiar once more. I did not pass through the courtyard and risk being exposed, instead I tore up the grate in the basement of my building and leapt into the catacombs below. Unlike before, I did not head north toward the forest but instead in another direction. After a few moments of running in the dark, I stopped directly beneath the underground parking lot and peered upwards through the grate; the bright luminescent lights above allowed for little square beams of light to shine through onto my face.

I listened for only a moment but could detect no sign of movement from the living humans or the dead members of my guard. Well, _the_ guard, I now supposed. I leapt and grabbed the grate, my fingers slid beneath the worn bars and kept me aloft as I pressed my feet firmly against the wall, then heaved. With a gritty screech and an explosion of rust, the metal gave away and tore off in my arms. I slid it up through the hole I'd made and across the concrete, before throwing through my bag and then following.

The parking lot was brightly lit at night, a long stretch of concrete and two dozen cars of all colours, makes and speeds on either side. Using my foot, I nudged the grate back in place and walked further down the driveway. Only now did I remember that I was barefoot, and the soles of my feet – although unharmed – were filthy. I could smell the dirt from the forest, the contaminated sewage water from the catacombs. A part of me regretted not showering before this daring escape, but I soon realized that the foul odour would mask my scent, at least a little.

I found the car I desired, a similar one to the one I had previously used on my journey to Volterra. I had no name for the car, but I knew it was fast enough to get me from Volterra to Pisa within the hour, and in that moment that was all that mattered. Getting away and staying alive. Survival. Ironic, that we immortals portray ourselves as an evolved, established species of sophistication and hierarchy, but when the situation calls for it we resort to focusing on one thing: our own survival.

Survival of the fittest.

I opened the trunk and threw my bag in, but when I went to close the trunk a scent hit me and I spun. Standing fifty yards away was a human subjugate, the same human girl that had driven me from the airport back to Volterra. She took a startled step back, her hands trembling as she twiddled with her thumbs. I realized that it was her duty to parole the parking lot. But why?

"Ma'am." She addressed me, bobbing her head in respect.

"I'm taking this vehicle," Was my response. I reached up and pulled the trunk to, locking it. As I moved around the car I could feel her eyes on me, taking into account my clothes and dirty feet, my parched appearance.

"My apologies, ma'am, but the master has requested that no one is to leave the city until further notice."

"That does not apply to me, girl." I snarled. It did not, no matter what anyone said.

The girl gulped and I paused, daring her to argue with me. "I'm afraid it applies to everyone, the master instructed so. If…if you insist then, then – I must report you to the master." It hit me then. So he knew, or he suspected. Perhaps Kai had changed his mind in the throne room and told Aro everything, exposed both of our secrets. A part of me – the part that still saw him as the beautiful naked man who had made me laugh earlier – refused to accept that as a possibility, but I had to think realistically. I was leaving, there was no question about that, but this human had spotted me and would certainly report me to the trio. Unless…

I turned to face her and I wondered if something shifted in my features to show the decision I had made, as the girl's eyes widened and she took several steps back, lifting her hands in pleading.

"I am truly sorry about this, girl." I walked towards her. Tears pooled in her eyes, her lip trembled as she began sobbing and tumbling away yet the clumsy thing tripped over her own footing and hit the ground.

"Please – Please don't! I don't want to die! I've served this coven well, please!" She pushed herself up and begun scrambling away. Her pleads went unnoticed. The burn in my throat had been too severe and, in the presence of fresh, hot blood, I'd given in to the monster wearing my skin. I crossed the space between us and stood behind her, I reached down and snatched her up by her auburn locks. She thrashed in my arms, yelling out and kicking but for all it was worth she might have well as just accepted it as definite.

I offered the human girl the courtesy of a quick death and wrung her throat until I heard her neck snap, then her body fell limp in my arms. I glanced around the seemingly empty parking lot once more just to ensure no one had heard her pleads for mercy I had not granted. I heard no heart beats or panicked breaths, and could not detect neither through scent or sense, the presence of another immortal. Kicking open the sewer grate I hauled her body over my shoulder before dropping through the hole. If I was planning on escape my city subtly then I could not very well go about leaving bodies drained of blood out in the open, therefore I fed from the girl in the cover of the sewers.

It did not take long for all sense and reason to subside and the hunter to take control of my body, and she was indeed thirsty. Within seconds my sharp teeth tore through the fragile flesh of the girl's throat and spill her still warm blood onto the dust-coated stone floor of the tunnel. With each gulp, more blood pulsed from the open wound; I could feel it staining my lips, dripping from my chin. My body although still, meted at that hot, rich, almost tangy taste.

Five minutes later I found myself closing the sewer grate a third time, but this time I had left another beneath the concrete. The other guards on duty would locate her remains within a few hours when rigor mortis set in. In a way, I felt for the human as she _had_ served this coven well in the short time she had been with us, but she had served me a great deal more in offering her life to nourish me – whether willingly or not. If the guard were to crash through those doors, fully aware that I had figured out the truth and was currently attempting an escape, then I would have had to take them on and I would have lost. Weak, malnourished – practically zero chance of survival. But now with at least one body's worth of fresh blood soaking into my veins, I had a chance should that plausible scenario play out.

Also, I'd had an excuse to change out of my hunting attire which, evidentially, was drenched in her blood. Whilst still in the sewers I'd stripped off the tank top and bottoms and changed into my comfortable tight jeans, over-sized black T-shirt and my sturdy, reliable black boots. In a way, I was still filthy as I craved a shower, but wiping my face of her blood with my cloak would have to do for now. Filthy, but full.

Again with my bag over my shoulder, I made way for the car. As I moved I could already feel the effects the blood had on my body; my muscles and bones became strong, not as stiff as they had previously been. The world became that little bit brighter, clearer, more defined now my senses were once again focused. She was not enough to appease my thirst but would tide me over during the journey, but I knew as I slid into the driver's seat that once in Pisa I would need to feet again.

No one arrived as I started the car and reversed back into the corner of the lot before speeding off down the asphalt and through the city. I kept an eye out, my eyes flicking from the road ahead to the mirrors on either side of the doors. I knew Aro and the trio would not summon me for at least another hour or two, hopefully believing me off on my hunt and would be kind by allowing me time to freshen up afterwards. Two hours was plenty to get to Pisa and board a flight out of this country. But after that…after that they would suspect something was off, they would search for me and find the girl I'd killed. Aro would know that his Overseer – his precious little girl, his prodigy, experiment or whatever I was to him – had been clever enough to figure out the truth and flee for her life.

As I left the walls of the city without detection, I reached up to adjust the rear-view mirror and from here could see the city in the distance. I could see, beyond the expanse of rolling dark hills, the angular shapes of buildings and rooftops, the hundreds of tiny golden flares from flaming torches and lights, and of course there was the clock-tower rising above it all. The thought of the faces beyond those walls caused a blow of agony to the gut and heart. I had one last look before turning back to the road and accelerating away.

* * *

Once in the heart of Pisa, I decided that ditching the car was my best option. Then I needed to finish my hunt. On the drive I had called ahead and arranged for one of the Volturi's resources to supply me with a private jet, prepared for take-off within the hour. Thankfully, the confirmation that this was possible assured me that those back home had yet not realized that I was running away. After abandoning the car, I scaled the side of a building and took to the rooftops; I crouched low on the lip of a small hotel across from a populated street of restaurants and bars. Dozens if not hundreds of absent-minded humans came and went, laughing and smoking, eating and drinking, unaware that a demon lurked above that contemplated making them it's next meal or not.

Honestly, I could have just picked two and been done with it, should have, yet I found myself searching, praying, to find someone with whom I would feel little to no remorse in killing. In the end I overheard a prostitute and her client arguing at the farthest end of an alleyway. Although I had little respect for the woman I had even less for the man that refused to pay her for her 'services' so I decided to make him my next kill. I stepped off the roof and fell to the ground directly behind him, landing as gently as I would If I had simply floated to the floor. I grabbed the woman and shoved her towards the exit, "Leave," she yelled about being scammed, so I placed a small wad of cash into her palm and screamed at her in Italian to leave. She did not disobey. The large man had tried to yell at me, to threaten me, but he barely spoke three words before I raked my nails across his throat and ended his life too.

His death was shortly followed by that of an elderly man, in his late seventies at least. I could smell the disease on him, see it in his papery thin skin and taste it in the air. From my quick, unprofessional analysis, he had a few months to live at that. And, like the human subjugate, I made his death quick and as painless as possible.

The hour was up, and a text alert on my cell informed me that my jet was ready and waiting at the same runway I had met Sebastian and his men. Sebastian, what would he think upon discovering my betrayal? I pictured him on another private jet sat across from whomever Aro would send in search of me, handing them photographs of myself from the past and hinting at where his resources had last seen me. Except they would not. I was not foolish, or stupid and undertrained and I would not be tracked by anyone they sent. Be that as it may, I soon discovered I was contradicting my own thoughts; the smart thing to do would be to just start running and never stop, not ever, but I was not doing a smart thing. I knew exactly where I would end up, exactly where Aro would expect me to go.

After making my way throughout the airport and avoiding all of those boring human lines I had no need to wait in, I found myself crossing the tarmac towards the long black jet. The door was already open, the human pilot stood in a suit and sunglasses with his hands folded behind his back. Professional. He knew what I was and would not ask questions.

I was about one hundred and twenty yards from the jet when the heavy wind blew into me and brought with it the scent of death. Beyond the smell of the forests and the hordes of humans in the building's surrounding us, the fuel in the planes and the metallic taste in the air, there was another. Immortal. Familiar. Come to fetch me home. I turned just as they attacked. Four of them, they came at me from all sides, charging out of the shadows and towards the jet with their fingers bent into bone-like claws and their teeth exposed.

Immediately I recognized them as members of my guard, Thomason and William, Malaka and Rhys. Two unimportant and two indispensable.

"Well…. shit." I set off running towards the jet and when close enough I launched my bag at the pilot whom dived to catch it. "Go!" I screeched at him, "Prepare for take-off! Now!"

We immortals were fast, and by the time I had turned to take them on, two of them were upon me. Thomason and Makala, the two highest ranking after Dimitri and Felix and the two who would take their positions should a time arise when they were needed elsewhere. Ungifted, but loyal to me – until now. I ducked beneath Thomason's obvious grab and reached up to take a handful of his long locks in my hand and pull. His head broke from his body with an awful snapping sound. I allowed a single second to enjoy the kill before I turned and leapt a good fifteen feet into the air and over Makala as she charged at me. I angled my feet so when I hit the ground I hit the ground running, straight towards William. An older vampire closer to Aro's age but strong for he was a body-builder when turned. Bigger than Felix, or even Emmett Cullen

He laughed as we ran at one another, our bodies just a blur against the wind. His laughter only made me smile as I dropped to my knees and slid across the floor, my trousers tore and my legs stung the tiniest bit, I let my head fall back and hair blow outwards; the moment his giant arm passed overhead I pushed upright, spun and slammed my foot into the bottom of his spine like a sledgehammer. He cried out in pain but it hadn't been powerful enough a kick to cripple him, so he tuned and grabbed my ankle and pulled.

Footsteps from behind distracted me and in a single second I knew what I had to do. If I focused only on William I may have managed to get free without injury but whomever was approaching would have the perfect opportunity to take my head clean off. So, in that second, I made a risky decision and twisted my body on an angle it was not designed to make. I felt my thigh stretch and crack but I used the pain to power my blow straight into Rhys's throat, the sudden movement had been too quick for him to notice and my fist knocked him a good fifteen feet backwards and into the air. I barely had time to see his face before I spun back to William and brought my elbow down hard into his face, momentarily blinding him whilst I pulled my foot free.

I stepped back on that same foot and winced at the pain but could feel myself already healing, then with my good leg I brought my knee up and snapped William's head back until he hit the ground. I could hear the engine roaring from the jet, the pilot yelling at me that we were ready for take-off.

Deciding that another blow to the knee could easily shatter it – and then I would be fucked – I made a run for the jet but did not make it. Rhys crashed into me so suddenly and out of the blue that I cried out when we hit the ground hard. He pressed his knee into the spot directly beneath my ribs and pressed down as savagely as he could, using his body weight to keep me pinned. I swung for him but he managed to catch my wrists and pin them down too. I thrashed beneath him as wildly as I could, snapping at his throat like a crazed beast with a mouth full of canines but he just laughed.

"I've been wanting to do this for a long time." He swung and his rock hard fist connected with the side of my skull, the blow blurred my vision for a quick moment and I gritted my teeth at the pain. Not meant to kill, just hurt. He wanted to take his time. "Do you have any idea how hard it's been these past few years to listen to you bossing me around and not speak back, to act afraid! Of _you!"_ The young vampire I had spoken to on the watchtower rooftop the week prior was gone and in his place stood a more confident man, wearing his face. His terrified eyes had darkened into a mocking glare, he found this amusing. I realized now that it was an act. He had been forced my Aro to play the part of a lower ranking guard whom respected and feared their superior when in fact, it was a game.

"Do you remember when you threatened to burn me? Do you?" He yelled so loud I felt the vibrating from his vocal chords. He purposely dragged his fingers down the side of my throat, burrowing ridges into my skin. "Well now look where you are, _master,_ it is you that will burn! You who will feel the flames of a pyre, you who will-"

His sentence cut short when a hand reached out of nowhere, stuck their fingers in his mouth and tore his upper jaw and the rest of Rhys's head from his body. I had not realized what had happened until I knocked his body aside and rolled into a crouch with my hair dangling over my eyes, teeth barred and claws ready.

Then I saw the face of my saviour.

"Kai?"

He stood there looking down at Rhys's body in absolute disgust before wiping his hands on his shirt. He looked almost exactly the same as I had seen him earlier, dressed in tightly fitted black trousers and his signature polished shoes, with his white ironed shirt was now creased beneath the flapping folds of his trench-coat.

"Kai?" His name passed my lips in a whisper. My voice distracted him and his gaze found me again. His eyes widened as he reached down and lifted me to my feet. I did not hesitate, I threw myself into his arms and buried my face in his shoulder, clinging to him so tightly it must have hurt just as much as his embrace hurt me blissfully.

"Isabella," He breathed into my neck, sending shivers up and down my spine. Over his shoulder I saw both Makala and William missing limbs or two but alive, staring in disbelief.

"You traitor!" Makala roared at Kai, "You will burn alongside her! I will see to it!" She attempted to gain some kind of stance but crumpled to her shattered knees. Their limbs were scatted about but not destroyed, they could easily be reattached with venom and time. I went to move to destroy them beyond repair but Kai grabbed me by the shoulders and shook his head.

"Don't, you need to let them live. Trust me." He glanced over his shoulder at the jet and I moved a strand of loose hair blowing in the wind out of my face before following his gaze. The pilot was beckoning me over. "Listen to me, listen, you need to get on the jet, now."

My heart cringed at the thought, "What? I will if you come with me." I squeezed his fingers, refusing to ever let go.

"I can't, I have to stay. It's the only way." He shook his head, even with panic in them his eyes were utterly beautiful. Hypnotic and beautiful. "Go!"

"I am not leaving without you!" Absurd and wrong. He had lied to me about everything but who was I to blame him when under Aro's rule? He had been keeping me safe.

"Don't you understand? I have to stay so we both can live, but I promise you, Isabella, I promise you…. we'll see each other again." I found my chest heaving uncontrollably, and if I were a human I was sure I would have been having a break down. If I was human. When I had been human I had been Bella Swan, and from the stories I had heard she had been a damsel, always panicking, always crying, always in need of rescuing. Well not me. I was not her. I would be strong.

Whatever Kai meant by that, I had to trust that it was enough. That it was the truth. So I nodded.

"Promise?"

"I swear it to you. I promise." He grabbed my face in both hands before kissing me and it felt as if my soul had lifted and consumed my entire body causing me to feel painfully light. Every cell in my body screamed at me when I took a step back. Every impulse begging me not to let go but I did, and it left my chest feeling hollow. Then I tore myself away and sprinted for the jet. I boarded and within seconds the door had closed and we were taking off down the runway.

"Are you okay, ma'am?" Called the pilot from the cockpit. I could easily make out Makala and William who were on their knees with Kai's hands on their heads. I did not take my eyes from the shrinking man on the ground below. I did not take my eyes off the man who was risking his life for mine.

"No," I answered, "But I will be."

* * *

The jet I had boarded the night of my escape had taken me directly to London, where I bought a cheap hotel room and finally showered for the first time in what felt like forever. I had lain in that bathtub and cried some more, and if I angled my head right the water streaming down onto my face could act as tears. It was in that moment, when that exact thought occurred to me, that I decided that I would not cry anymore. I went out and I shopped for new clothes of different styles, bought dozens of contacts as I did not see myself in any place I would not need them anytime soon, and kept an eye out for any sign I was being followed.

I had been followed to the airport back in Italy by four of the guard. Someone must have found the human girls body in the tunnels, reported it and it would have clicked in Aro's mind. I could imagine him as clear as day upon his throne atop the dais with one leg folded over the other and his hands pressed firmly together as he instructed the four of them to seek me down and return me at all costs. They had almost succeeded in doing so if it were not for Kai.

Mordecai. He had shown up out of the blue, I had not even scented him before he hauled Rhys off me and took that young guard members head from him. From what Thomason said, he had known that Kai was there. Perhaps he had been sent with the others to collect me, or maybe Aro thought that my lover could persuade me to return to them willingly. No – No Aro surely wasn't so delusional.

No matter the reason, he had turned against them and aided me in my escape. In that moment I had not been thinking and I'd wanted nothing more than for him to climb those steps and flee with me. On the run, together, the two of us. Yet after hours of calming myself and replaying the word he had spoken, I at last understood why had to stay behind and what he had been doing to Makala and William who had been on their knees before him. He had been altering their memories, using the ability I had rarely seen but now knew had been subjected to myself. I guessed that he had been making them forget that he had turned against them and helped me, that I had been talented to destroy two of them and elude the other two all on my own.

Which I could have done, by the way.

But what of Aro? Aro would want to take my Kai by the hand and see the events of the confrontation play out for himself through Kai's own eyes. How would he avoid that?

I began to realize that all of these questions were only adding to my worry, and that I had to focus on where I was going from there. In the spur of the moment, I had packed my bags and hailed a taxi. Hours later I was on a beach in Ireland, watching the ocean waves thrash back and forth. It was on that beach, surrounded by wet sand, damp grass and nothing but the howling of the wind that I realized I was just putting off the inevitable. I knew where I had to go. I had known before the truth had come out that in the end, I'd have to return to where it all begun.

So I pulled out my cell and booked a flight from Dublin to Seattle, and from there I would return to Forks.

* * *

The airport bathroom was small, and it smelt awful, but I needed a place to change.

I left the cubicle and smiled at the girl who most certainly was not Isabella, Immortal Overseer to the Volturi Guard. No – this girl looked nothing like Isabella. Eyes lined with kohl, lips painted in rouge and I'd even coloured my cheeks to give them that pinched pink colour. Using my fingers, I brushed my fringe aside into the rest of my long, twisting golden locks and smiled. I'd decided that Aro may have very well have sent his men to scout out any airport I may show up at, especially those not too far from Forks. In case this was the case, I'd chosen not to show up and instead, this character I now portrayed would take my place. One of my passports claimed that I was twenty-year-old Katerina Mikhailov from Russia, and at the time the photograph had been taken I had gone through a phase of dying my hair blonde. So Katerina I would be.

The finishing touches were the jade green contacts I placed over my irises; as well as the contacts, wig and make-up, I'd managed to acquire clothing that I particularly wouldn't wear: A baggy white T-shirt, jeans with tears at the knees and worn baseball boots. I'd offered some random girl on the street ten pound for her camouflage jacket and hat, she'd refused, so I just handed her another fifty and she happily agreed. I rubbed my cheeks again in a useless attempt at blending in the makeup and giving my skin somewhat of a natural glow. I'd had to apply the make-up along my throat and chest as the shirt I wore had a wide neckline that showed off my breasts, it looked rather silly with the jacket but I had also decided that Katerina was alternative and enjoyed strange, gunge styles.

I pulled the girls beanie over my head to keep the wig in place, lifted the ruck-sack I'd also bought along the way over my shoulder and slumped out and headed towards the gate. That was the other thing. I was boarding an actual flight, with other passengers, in coach. Any other situation and I would have taken a burning whip than fly coach: all those fouls smells lingering in the air, the body odour and sweat and released gasses. The wailing infants and ignorant parents – I could sit still comfortably in that small space the entire journey but that did not mean I desired to.

Alas, I would have to endure it. Having the guard members waiting for me on that runway back in Pisa had made me realize that they had guessed exactly what I would do. I would not risk privately flying anymore. I just had to hope Katerina Mikhailov was not an identity anyone back home knew of, because for all I knew one of them had made it up.

* * *

Once we landed in Seattle I wasted no time and set off in search of a quick and easy car retailer, and upon finding one had to fight with my inner queen on buying the most expensive and beautiful looking one they owned. Instead, I drove away in a '67 Chevrolet Impala. Once on the road towards Forks town, I found that the smooth leather – now warm since I had turned on the heating – and the music playing through the radio was confusingly comforting and within the hour, I smiled. I guessed the car was not awful.

I drove on and on, careful not to exceed the speed limit. Not out of fear of being pulled over but out of fear that anyone with a certain kind of eye may recognize that it's driver was not particularly bothered about their safety. I had not detected any of my kind when collecting my bag and leaving the international airport. I had stuck around and hidden on the rooftops of nearby buildings just in case anyone showed up but from the looks of things no one was waiting to drag me kicking and screaming back to Volterra. Within a couple of hours, I took notice of how the roads begin to thin, the trees on either side grew higher and darker, the cars I passed aged and aged, thus was the result of driving away from populated cities and into the middle of nowhere.

When I passed the border into forks the steady calm that had settled in wavered as I knew that soon enough they'd catch my scent and come charging. I heard the howl just as I turned another winding corner and spotted them. They were here. The pack stood in a straight line in the middle of the empty road, the rain making their fur dark and heavy. I recognized most of them, well I thought I did.

I slowed to a stop ahead, then realized that they were growling at me. It hit me then that from their point of view, there was a strange blonde vampire sat behind the rain-blurred windshield. I sighed and pulled up the hood before stepping out of the vehicle and closing the door. I moved closer and one by one, they recognized who stood before them.

"Well," I shrugged as I walked forward and folded my arms; my wet shoes squeaked. "You haven't attacked yet, so I am taking this as a good sign." One of the larger and meaner looking wolves snapped as they went to pounce but another, the reddish one I remembered to be Jacob Black, knocked the wolf aside with his muzzle and let out a snarling reply of his own. The Alpha barked a command and the grey wolf who had gone to attack bowed his giant head in apology to his Alpha. I scoffed and shook my head, finding myself amused for some unknown reason.

"I should apologise to you, Samuel." Only now upon seeing him did I even think back to the last, when I had attacked and injured most of the Cullen's and knocked Samuel out cold. He had healed completely by now, as I was sure most of the Cullen's and Denali's had also, yet still I supposed an apology was in order. I hated every word that left my mouth, even though I knew they were necessary. "You must understand that at that moment in time I was not thinking clearly, I was angry and afraid. My only focus was on escaping." Some growled and turned away, others just watched me with pity in their eyes, pity I did not want nor need. Finally, the Alpha huffed in acknowledgement and one of the many weights I carried was lifted. "Thank you." I waited but it appeared they did not trust me enough to revert to human form, and I could not blame them. Deep down a part of me secretly wanted that werewolf fur coat. "I would like permission to cross through these land to the home of the Cullen's, with your escort if you deem it necessary." The way I worded it was polite, but I also made it adamant that I _was_ getting to that large white house one way or another, with or without their permission.

Several of the beasts exchanged wary looks, their emotions obvious even as animals. In the end, Sam finally nodded and the wolves took to the forest. Beaming that I did not need to fight my way through, as fun as that would have been, I made my way back to the vehicle, buckled up and set off down the road towards the Cullen home with the shape-shifters charging alongside me.

* * *

Asher's Note:

Hello Everyone! Chapter 14 has arrived! It's not a short one but not as long as the last, unfortunately. I begin a chapter intending to end it at a certain point, but always get too eager to upload and show you all I cut it off halfway through! Oh well, I think this should suffice for now. A lot happens in this chapter too! Isabella makes her daring escape from Volterra and successfully until she gets to the airport where she is found by members of her own guard that attack. They fight and one of them almost manages to take her down until Kai shows up and gives her a hand. I got emotional writing the scene where she leaves, and it is explained why he had to remain later. It may not seem emotional to you, but it felt emotional to me. Let me know what you think. Also, sorry if during this chapter when Isabella was in London and Ireland that it passed fairly quickly. There are only so many ways to make her sitting around waiting entertaining and it felt easier to kind of brush over that, as it did not play a large part in this story other than her finally deciding to return to Forks. Let me know what you think of her fake blonde hair? Side note: I saw an old photo of Kristen with naturally golden hair and wearing a white T-shirt and it kind of inspired that little disguise I wrote for her. A part of me wondered if she would maybe dye her hair permanently, but maybe that's not this Isabella. Who knows. Another side note: I was watching supernatural at the time of writing this chapter, thus the inclusion of a '67 Chevrolet Impala. Ha.

* * *

Responding to your reviews:

Goldielover: Well she's returned to Forks…so chances are she's going to see Edward again, aha. I'm not a huge fan of Edward either, but Isabella feels the need to know who she used to be and where else can she go? As much as she'd hate to admit it, she doesn't want to be alone right now. Thanks for reviewing!

Sharksaver23: Thanks for reviewing! As we can see, she went to Pisa, London, Ireland and now back to Forks. But she may travel to other places later!

Hopestreet: Exactly! But whether or not Jane was telling the truth…. we shall see. No, Isabella is not weak anymore, aha. Thanks for the review!

Guest: The Cullen's will be back next chapter! Thanks!

Macey: Thank you so much, Macey! Yes, Isabella certainly is those things! I'm not sure I know what you mean by E-B Story? I'm guessing Edward-Bella? If that is what you mean, then I don't know. Right now, I don't see Isabella ending up with anyone, because I haven't decided. But…I do love Kai! We shall see.

Mrs. Stilinski Clearwater: Ah! I see! Unfortunately, the Emoji did not show up on my computer but I thank you for it, and for explaining! I was rather confused! Thank you!

ElizabethMidnight: I am not sure if you shall see these responses or not as your reviews were not on the last chapter, but the 1st and 2nd, yet I shall respond anyway just in case! Thank you so much for your kind words! They mean a lot! I do write my own novels and have been working with different publishers on getting them published, but that is a long while off. If that does happen, I'll be sure to let you know!

Miss24Fan: Aha. I wish I could! Unfortunately, real life gets in the way! But I hope you enjoy!

LRJ: Here!

Alice: Thank you so much, it is what I was going for! Unfortunately, not many grand adventures…. yet, aha. Thanks!

XxTMSxx: Thank you! I am glad you caught up! Means a lot!

Kristie: Thank you I'm glad my chapters helped! Aha. And don't worry, I'm moving past the hate!

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~Asher~


	15. Chapter 15

~ Isabella's POV ~

* * *

When I reached the end of the Cullen drive way and turned onto their lawn, I saw that they were already waiting for me. Through the windshield I could see only seven of them stood together before the front doors of their magnificent home; as still and as cold as statues. I pulled into park and watched as the wolves that had escorted me here continued passed me and towards the trees, and advantage point from which they could either turn on me, protect the Cullen's or flee into the thicket of the forest. No one moved an inch or spoke a word, they were waiting for me to make the first move. I was the one to decide how this would play out: with anger and death or with softness and apologises.

So, I stepped out of the car and shut the door behind me. I moved slowly to the front of the vehicle where I stood, exposed, in front of the Cullen home. The house itself was just as magnificent as it had been the first time I laid eyes upon it a month ago; it was timeless and elegant, but the ivory white colour of the walls was beginning to look almost grey in the wake of the storm. Three stories, on which the second had a large, rectangular window – the very same window I had smashed through when escaping. The Cullen's had replaced the shattered glass since then.

Forks was already a dreary and dull town, yet Fall was beginning to show in the reoccurring storms, in the trees that were stripped bare and the skies that darkened earlier as the days shortened. The storm brought with it heavy gusts of wind that blew my hair forward, that made the bottom of my jacket to flap and caused a handful of dead leaves to skip lazily across the grass and towards the forests where they began to gather at their exposed, dark roots. In the breeze, I caught the Cullen's scents, a range of verily immortal flavours, each of which were compelling alluring in their own unique way.

They stood how I would have imagined them to stand if they were posed for a professional family portrait: Carlisle in the centre with his wife, Esme, on his arm. Jasper who had a stern and unnerving look on his face, stood with Alice in front of him, her head barely touching his chest. The look on small Alice's face was enough for me to know she had foreseen my return. On the doctors other side stood, to my surprise, Rosalie and Emmett. The woman whose beauty made Heidi average-looking and her warrior-built mate with the smirk of a twelve-year-old boy. If Emmett and Rosalie were here, then why were the other members of their coven not? The Denali's?

Standing at the far end of the line was Edward, a few extra inches from his family like a child not wanting to participate in the Family's Christmas card. The wind tugged on his strange bronze locks and his hideous golden eyes locked onto my ruby red ones. This time he chose not to greet me with his stupid crooked grin, so I scowled in return. I knew – I just knew that he was thinking that he had won, that he had convinced me that I was his Bella. _His,_ being the operative word. If this were the case, then he was in for one hell of a shock.

Unlike I, the Cullen's were dressed for the weather, in large sweaters and woolly cardigans, thick boots, scarfs and duster coats. The cold failed to bother them but I had come to know that, for the Cullen's, appearances were everything. After an eternity, I spoke at last. "Hello, Cullen's." They did not stir at my greeting, but their eyes did flicker to one another in a way that blatantly said they were not sure on what to make of this, of me, and this entire situation. Although saying that, Alice Cullen did voice her opinions on one matter of discussion.

"You dyed your hair!" She screeched as she stepped away from her mate, much to Jasper's annoyance.

It took me a moment to understand and then I strangely found myself smiling. I huffed something that resembled a laugh and looked down at myself feeling, well…. ridiculous. The last time they had seen me I stood before them strong and dark and elegantly beautiful. Now I stood before them wearing what today's youth looking like what today's youth would refer to as a 'Hipster' Forget being Bella Swan, I was losing Isabella.

I had to fight back the urge to ask for a private moment to change. Can you imagine how ridiculous that would sound? _Hello Cullen's, I know I should probably apologise for almost killing you all but do you mind if I change first? I don't feel nearly as intimidating in my baggy T-shirt, scuffed jeans and high-tops?_

Reaching above I tore the beanie from my head and took the golden wig along with it. I shook out my natural hair and felt the cool breeze flow through my long locks. I tugged off my jacket also, then threw it along with the hat and wing into the backseat of the impala. I had half-expected the Cullen's to spring into action and take me down, maybe even attempt to end me whilst my back was turned but they had not moved an inch.

"A wig, thank god." Alice muttered under her breath with her hand over her still heart.

"Isabella," Carlisle finally took control, he stepped forward to speak again but Edward cut in over his father.

"You came back?" Edward sighed.

I initially wanted to reply with a sarcastic remark about how obvious my return was, I lived for those moments, but decided that this was one of those other moments in which you wish to make a joke but in doing so you would only add to the uncomfortableness of the situation. Instead, I shrugged and nodded before crossing my arms and responding with a simple,

"Yeah, I did." What else could I say? What was I supposed to say?

 _I'm sorry, I was wrong, you were right, let me crash on your couch?_

Carlisle took another step and lifted his hand almost to beckon me forward, but not in a commanding way as Aro always had, but in welcoming. "Isabella, I'm happy to see you've decided to return to us. Let's take this indoors, shall we? It would appear we have much to discuss." I wanted to move, to follow but I could not. I was frozen, out of worry and embarrassment. Esme seemed to understand this as she lay a hand softly on Carlisle's arm and lead him towards the house. The others in pursuit.

I remained in that spot and watched them each follow, and then soon after Edward went indoor three figures emerged from the green of the woodlands. Samuel and Jacob in human form, dressed in their favourite denim shorts and old T-shirts, and by their side a female shifter, the first I had ever seen. She had cropped glossy black hair, perfect copper skin and that same insignia tattoo on her arm. She, unlike the other two, glared at me with a clear repulsion. She did not hate me because of my immortality – although I was sure it played a contributing factor – she hated me on a personal level. For whatever reason, I did not know. What had I – Bella – done to her? The other wolves made their way to the back of the giant house.

Sam and the female only glanced my way before heading indoors, Jacob lagged to smile at me and give me a sheepish wave before following on. I was thankful for what Esme had done, she had given me a moment alone to gather my thoughts. I ran my hands over my face to wipe my eyes of the soft drizzle of rainwater, then I turned on the spot to look back at the car. A few seconds and I could be on that road and gone. Truthfully, a part of me desired nothing more than to reverse and flee back down the road until I reached the highway where I could drive until I ran empty of fuel, then I could run – run until the sun expands and the Earth perishes in fire and ash. I was beginning to listen to the part of me that argued with who I usually was more often than late, in fact, my own self-doubt had granted it a voice in the first place. Soon enough she would have a name and I would name her Bella.

That time had not come yet though, so I would not give in to cowardice, I would not run.

I straightened my stance, curled my lips into a smile and moved towards the house.

* * *

I found them all in the sitting area, spread about the spacious room; draped across the furniture. Upon entering I caught the scent of fresh sawdust, weeks old yet the motes still lingered in the warm air. Sawdust and the almost bleachy smell of fresh paint and new plaster. I remembered all the furniture my little rampage had destroyed, most of the items had to have been decades old at least but were now gone and replaced brand new. The wall I had thrown Edward through had been bricked and plastered up, with a fresh coat of paint over the entire thing. Another gleaming glass coffee table now sat in place of the old, the same went for the wall mirror Emmett had smashed my head against when I raked my nails down, and almost decapitated, his mate.

Speaking of Rosalie, her open-necked cardigan revealed that the ridges my claws had left had healed completely, and now I looked, so had Alice's broken knee, Edward's twisted spine and Esme's cracked temple. To say I had almost killed several members of this coven, they did not seem to be in any particular hurry to return the favour.

"Please, sit," Esme smiled, offering me the very same duck egg arm chair they had forced me to sit in the last time I was here, yet this felt more of an invitation than demand. It felt strange, almost like an intervention. _Isabella, we're doing this because we care about you, we love you, but you have a problem…_

One of those horrifying kind of things. I nodded thanks – I had been able to apologise but saying thank you was strangely more challenging – and I sat in the chair. The chair was by the giant hearth, the roaring flames warmed the house nicely and I almost felt as if I were back home, sprawled out naked on my rug. The only thing missing was Mordecai's beautiful lips against my skin. Kai. I was in two minds about that man. On one hand, he had lied to me for as long as I could remember – which was longer than he had truthfully been lying to me for. which made the entire thing so much more complicated. He had stolen Bella away from the Cullen's and her human family, he had stripped her of all that made her Bella Swan and he conjured me into existence. The perfect product of warrior, goddess and monster. I hated him for it, I hated him for what he had done but on the other hand, he had made me. _I_ – Isabella – existed today because of him. My memories may have been false lies and thought up years but they were real in my mind. He had – in the least creepy way possible – given birth to me.

As well as that, the two years we had spent together had been like a dream also. I had not lowered my mental shield once in two years, not once, which meant that every memory, every emotion I felt with him in that time had been all my own. True, it had taken me those two years to admit it even to myself, but I had been beginning to feel things for him that were more than simple arousal.

Still, he had lied. I had been independent for so long but I would have given anything for someone to come along and convince me either to follow my heart or hollow it out once more. Was it better to have a hollow heart, or a broken one?

"Isabella?" I must have been drifting. Only a second or two of thinking about Kai but it had been enough for the Cullen's to notice.

"Yes," I said, not certain in what way I mean it. I looked around at their faces and again, no one spoke. It was rather annoying, actually. The last time they had been fighting over to one another to speak to me, to ask me questions but now my visit was voluntary they had nothing to say? Instead, a question came to mind so I asked it. "Where are the other Denali's?" I questioned Rosalie and Emmett.

The two looked confused and glanced at Carlisle as if he ought to be the once to answer. He too, looked confounded. "Other Denali's?"

"Your coven mates?" I focused again on Rose and Emmett.

"Oh, no, you're mistaken. Rosalie and Emmett are not members of the Denali coven; they are members of this one." Carlisle informed me.

"Oh, my mistake then. I just assumed since you showed up at the same time they did, and you weren't with the others during our first meeting." I thought back to that night, the night it all changed. I had been so blind back then, so caught up the fantasy Aro had ordered Mordecai to create. I could only now imagine how I must have looked to the Cullen's. Their fragile human pet – not dead, for starters – but parading about the place in black leather, ranting on about how she was the infamous Isabella of the Volturi Guard. The memory of that night had become, to me, one of those horrendous moments you look back on and can only wonder what in the hell was going through your mind.

"Yeah, Blondie took off long before that." Jacob sniggered and he kicked at Rosalie's knee with his boot. She shoved it off with enough force to break it, but Jacob only sniggered.

"You left, why?" I didn't care. I just needed to think about what to say when they inevitably ask the serious questions.

Rosalie rolled her golden eyes, clearly disinterested in telling the story but she did anyway. "I lost interest." She bluntly put it. "I went on the hunt for Victoria with my family out of respect for my brother, and your memory." She looked at me. "I ran with Edward and my family up until three months ago when we lost track of Victoria yet again. I lost my temper, Edward and I got into an argument."

"An argument?" Esme exclaimed, "You almost tore each other apart!" The motherly concern in her tone mesmerized me.

"Besides the point," she smirked. Rosalie had a beautiful smile and full lips. "I left, refusing to search for the killer of a human I never liked in the first place."

"And you left because she's your wife and she told you to?" I looked to Emmett and he smiled and laughed, nodding along with me. I couldn't blame him.

"We were in China when we got the call that you were alive, and…like this." He said.

"Different?"

"Different." Rosalie confirmed. I was half tempted to ask if the blonde preferred who I was now to who I had been. I think she did, I could tell in her golden eyes.

"So why did you come back?" Edward finally spoke. There was a sharpness to his voice that had not been there before, and a change in the way he looked at me. I could not quite name it but the closest term I could think of was…dislike. All of a sudden he looked at me and was disgusted at what he saw? It took me a few seconds, and like I said before, seconds can last forever if we willed them to, but I needed the time to think about my answer. What was my answer? How was I supposed to confess my mistakes and beg them for help? In the end, I simply said the first thing that came to mind.

"You were right,"

"Go on." Carlisle urged, nodding at me. Again, a few seconds to think.

"You were right before, and I was wrong. I am…I am Isabella Swan. Or, I was. I'm not anymore. I refused to believe it at first, and wanted only to return to Volterra and fall back into a routine and world that was familiar and comforting to me. But as the days went on and questions continued to arise, I begun panicking. I knew I needed answers but how I would find them, I was unsure."

"I saw," said Alice. I frowned to let her know I was unsure on what exactly she saw. A lot happened since my return to Volterra. "I saw the day you left." Escaped, is a better word, "It's why we didn't come after you – Edward wanted to, of course, but I had already seen what would happen. If we ran after you then, you would have killed some of us without thinking."

I wondered whom out of the several of them I had killed in this alternate timeline, but decided it was not a smart or trusting move to ask.

"So I told them to stop, and let you go." The seer continued, "I watched your decisions for the following week, just in case you told Aro everything and the Volturi came for us, but you didn't. I saw snippets and bits, not much of great importance as you took your sweet time deciding whether or not you believed us, but something happened that convinced you."

"What tipped the scales?" Rosalie asked.

"Someone I know well slipped up, said something that suggested they knew the truth. That night I decided to run." Again, another flash of memory. The airport runway, the jet in the distance, Kai's face distorting in pain as he watched the love of his long life leave again.

"How long have you been on the run?" Jacob asked.

"Just a few days. I went to London first, then Ireland and now I'm here."

"Why?" It was Edward. I couldn't help but notice a somewhat demanding, angry vibe radiating from him. From the looks of the others, they felt it too. Edward was…furious. "What do you want? Why are you here?"

Bewildered, I tried to think of an answer. "I –"

"Well?" He snapped.

"Edward!" Esme scolded.

"No. She nearly killed us, almost all of us. She put us all in danger by coming back here, what did you expect us to do?" This suddenly alteration of character left me speechless and I wondered if Edward had fallen victim to some other immortal's mind control, as the man who loved Isabella Swan would never say these things to any variation of her that existed. Unless…he no longer saw _me_ as _her_.

This was enough to make me regret my decision to come here and seek sanctuary.

"I think it best if I just go." I stood upright and darted around the chair, aiming for the front door as fast as I could go without running. There were several cries of protest from behind, the shuffling of footsteps and the ruffle of clothing, but by the time the Cullen family made it to the porch I was already heading for the Impala. I unlocked the door and went to slip inside when a hand wrapped around my arm and pulled. I spun, prepared to strike, but found it was Jacob. He looked at me sternly, with serious eyes; his grip on my arm firm. I did not want to strike a blow as I did not want to risk hurting him gravely, but before I had chance to think, he spoke.

"Take a walk with me,"

"I beg your pardon?" I shook my head and went to sit again but he kicked the door shut and turned me to face him.

"Isabella, I'm asking you to walk with me?" I glanced once at the Cullen's who stood watching, as were the other members of the Shifter Pack. Some in human forms, others had already become gigantic beasts prepare to kill should Sam give the order. I did not know what to do. What could I do? Shove him away with just enough force to keep him down until I could get into the car and go, or walk with him? I did not want to be alone; I had accepted this by now and I knew if I drove away from them again they perhaps would not be there for me a third time. Moreover, I did not wish to leave. Edward's new hostile attitude towards me had been an unexpected surprise, the only reasoning behind it had to be that he had accepted that I was not his Bella, just a reminder of a love he had long since lost. Although compared to the warm welcome his parents and siblings had granted me, his personality shift meant very little.

I stalked by Jacob and leapt into the treeline and ran until I was far enough away from the house to be heard. It was not long before Jacob found me. "Are you just going to keep running away?" His deep voice distracted me from my mindless flee. "Is that who you are now, who you've become?" Jacob yelled my way. I craned my neck to look back at him; he seemed unfathomed by my wild eyes and exposed teeth. He shook his head and bite his lip, then ran a hand across his forehead lined with sweat. "You might have been human before but you never ran away from your problems. When James chose to hunt you down, you only cared about your father's protection; when you thought he'd taken your mother hostage, you abandoned your saviours and ran straight into the lion's den to save her. When – When Edward abandoned you here, in this very forest, you refused to stop searching for him; fuck, Bella, you travelled all the way to Italy to save him even though you knew he didn't love you." There was a hit of amusement behind his exclamation, he shrugged my way and dropped his arms to his sides. "You don't run away from your problems; you face them head on and you deal with them."

Of course, I knew why Jacob was saying this to me; I had made my loathing of Isabella Swan abundantly clear and he was reminding me of all the courageous things she had done so I would not give in and make her the stronger of the two of us, to allow her to have more courage to face her demons than I. I felt uncomfortable. As if suddenly my skin became too tight and was suffocating me, yet in the same instant I was empty inside. I was a bottomless pit of angst and fury and hurt. I had tried my damned hardest to ignore the expanding darkness, to fill it with sex or blood but none prevailed.

I needed release, to unleash this ever-growing weight. So, with fire coursing through my veins and fuelling my muscles, I lashed out at the closest oak tree with a feral savageness. My hands broke through the trunk in a matter of seconds; the sound of the tearing bark and breaking wood echoed through the entire clearing and beyond the trees. Birds took flight, rodents scatted in every direction as dying leaves and chunks of wooden shrapnel rained down upon them. When the damaged skeleton of the oak crashed to the ground with a thunderous roar, I moved onto the next.

After several more trees, I moved onto a boulder and then onto the side of a mountain itself, burrowing a brand-new cave into the foundation of the rock. It was only when the fire in my veins hardened and my rage calmed that I emerged and found Jacob leaning against a fallen trunk, waiting. I looked down at my hands to find them uninjured, of course, but wet with the water from the trees, and coated in dust and powdered rock, with bark lodged beneath my nails.

"Feeling better?" He asked when I stormed away from him like an angered child, with my arms crossed and lips pursed into a pout.

"Yes," I snapped my response. We walked at a human pace back the way we had come. Jacob darted forward and walked by my side, close enough to occasionally bump elbows. My initial reaction was to move away but no matter where I stepped, the Shifter followed. I was half-tempted to ask what he was doing and if he had ever heard of this fabulous concept commonly known as personal space, but then I saw the look in his almost black eyes and discovered that he simply just wanted to be close to me. I barely knew this young man but to him, I was the best friend he had lost suddenly and tragically. Strangely, I found myself more okay with Jacob by my side than Edward.

Unlike Edward, Jacob just wanted to be in my company and to laugh and joke and know me. Edward saw me as his mate, his 'true love' and expected me fully to return to that place eventually. It made standing in his company that much more irritable, knowing he saw me as…. his. Or he had.

"I do not understand." I said after a long silence, "How anyone could ever love him is beyond me."

He seemed to know who I was referring to immediately. "I've been asking myself the same question for years."

"I've only known him a short time and already I know he is broody and stubborn, from the sounds of things he was abusive and obsessive towards Bella."

"We're close enough to the house he can probably hear all this from up here," he tapped his temple, "You know that, right?"

I shrugged, honestly not caring in the slightest. "Then let him hear, I don't care. I would confess it to his face should the need to arise."

"He was," Jacob continued from my earlier statement, "Obsessive towards her, I mean, and yeah he can be a major prick at times but he isn't all bad. He cared about you – her" he corrected himself when I glanced his way, "– her, and wanted to keep her safe at all costs. He would have done anything to keep her protected, and in that way, I respected him. I knew whenever Bella was by his side…. she was safe, even if it took me months to believe it myself. I guess that's why I was so shocked when I found out Victoria had gotten to Bella. I could never understand how she could have not only slipped by us, by the Cullen's too."

"Yes, well, we know now that never actually happened, don't we?"

"Yeah," he shrugged, "That's true. I can forgive him for that, but something happened to make you this way. Letting you become who you are now, _that_ I won't forgive him for. Ever."

* * *

The Shifter Pack were the only ones still outdoors, several of them fully clothed and sat on the ground talking quietly among themselves until Jacob and I approached. Then they looked up and just watched. The Cullen's were indoors again, from the porch I could overhear Esme scolding Edward for behaving that way in her house, it made me smile. What Edward had said had got to me and I had run, but Jacob had brought me out of that melodramatic haze, he'd convinced me to stay, even if Edward didn't want it.

"Isabella, I'm sorry for Edward." Esme said when she came to meet Jacob and I in the foyer. She opened her arms to hug me and I stepped away, startled. She looked taken back, but then just flashed a smile I could tell was not forced and just beckoned towards the sitting room. "Come, I think he has something to say to you." I rolled eyes at Jacob when Esme turned her back and he just laughed and followed on.

He wasted no time and launched onto the couch, leaning against Rosalie who looked as if she were contemplating castrating the Shifter then and there. Edward slowly walked forward and the look on his face, however unapologetically displeased, was less disgusted than before. "I apologise for my behaviour; I'm finding it difficult to decide whether or not I care for you as of this moment." I nodded, acknowledging his apology but I did not want to reply verbally, only because I did not know what to say. I took the same seat they had offered me before, and tried to act as casual as one could.

"So what happens now?" It was Samuel who spoke up. Speaking for the first time since my return. Everyone turned their heads his way; having the attention solely on him seemed to make him uncomfortable. I could tell by the way he leaned forward and dropped his head a few inches as to seem smaller. He cracked his knuckles, if only to avert the attention from his face. "I mean, what do we do about this, won't this Volturi be looking for her."

He only met my eyes for a fraction of a second, then he turned back to Carlisle and locked his eyes only onto the doctor. It became clear that Carlisle was the only vampire he trusted, probably the only member of the Cullen coven he trusted. Carlisle looked puzzled, looking at his family then at me. "Yes, I suspect they will. But Alice will see when they decide to come to Forks, and as of this moment Aro has yet to make a decision."

"I'm keeping a close watch on Aro, Marcus and Caius too." I felt unusually violated, knowing that this tiny immortal could glance into my masters' futures. I then thought to myself that they were no longer my masters, they were the enemy now, even though referring to them as such, even in thought, felt treacherous. Although knowing that Alice had never spied in on my life and my choices made me feel insignificantly better, if she had seen me then we would have been having this meeting a long time ago.

"As for what we do now, I am still unsure. Although…." He thought to himself for a moment, gazing out of the window at the rain that had begun to fall in fatter drops, blurring the forest beyond the glass to a autumnal mirage. "Eleazar and I were speaking on the phone days after you left," he spun to me, "He was telling me he was currently looking into something he believed may have been involved in the alteration of your memories. He may have discovered something we don't know."

"So let's go to him, get out of town, at least for a couple of days. It will mean that if the Volturi do decide to spontaneously attack, it'll take them longer to track us." Esme said. Carlisle looked to the others for their opinions, all of them seemed to nod in agreement. Finally, both he and I looked to Edward who simply just nodded and stood up straight from the wall he had been leaning against.

"Fine. Let's go to Denali."

* * *

Asher's Note:

Hello Everyone! Chapter Fifteen is here. Sorry it took me a little longer to update than the last few chapters, but with Halloween recently and bonfire night coming up, I have been quite busy. In this chapter, not much happens. We see the Cullen's welcome Isabella into their home, forgive and forget the damage she caused, although Edward seems to have shifted entirely when it comes to his feelings on Isabella. Jacob, however, proves he still somewhat cares about her feelings. Isabella admits she was wrong, they were right and now they are going to travel to Denali, to Eleazar, who apparently may know something about what truly happened. Please review and let me know what you think!

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Responding to your reviews: (Some of your reviews have been failing to show up, if I do not respond to it here, then please leave it again on the next chapter or PM if you would like a response at all – Thanks)

Tracybuie: Maybe the Volturi will come. Maybe she will have to kill them all. Maybe not. We shall see. Thanks for the review.

LRJ: Thanks. Yes, Alice did see her coming but new that she had to wait for Isabella to come to them and could not act first.

Goldielover: Thank you, yes it was emotional and she will be spending a lot of time with the Cullen's from now on. What she will learn from throughout this story will change her, greatly.

Cherry: Thank you, I love Kai also!

Hopestreet: He did, and Isabella knows this. As she says in this chapter, she hates him for it but cannot help but want him in her life.

TheMrsDSalvatore: That is true, he obviously wants his old Bella back. But she is gone, for now, at least. Mwahaa

Icestick: Thanks! Ha!

Macey: Thank you so much! It means a lot! Yeah, Alice let the other Cullen's know that the wolves would escort Isabella to them, so there was no point in waiting at the border! Ha. That's alright, Kai's gift is unusual and does not appear physically. I am considering different publishers at the moment, nothing certain yet. If I do decide on one I shall certainly let you know which!

AcetaBells: Thank you so much for your nice review and I am pleased you are enjoying. I think you might be mistaken, only Bella believed the lie. Aro and the others new already who she was, it was a game they played! Just to let you know.

Asher: Nice name, aha. Also, I have no idea what you're talking about.

Kevin: I know how to spell. But I work all day and only have time to write and edit at night, and with a crappy spell checker also. Sometimes I miss things. How about maybe saying something about the story itself next time instead of just being judgmental.

Qwert: I'm not sure what you mean. This story will most certainly not be finished before Christmas. I have a long story planned.

Guest 1: Thank you for your review. The Volturi discovered she had ran away because of the body she left in the tunnels. Thank you for saying you shed a tear, it makes me happy I can write such emotional scenes.

GoddessofDawn: Thank you so much. I am not sure yet. Like I always say, it could go one of three ways. Edward, Kai, Single. Or she might die. I don't know yet. But from the looks of this chapter, Edward is not so thrilled Isabella is back.

Guest 2: You suggested Edward should come out of the closet. I love the idea of a Gay Edward as many of my other, more graphic stories suggest, but in this story, I don't think Edward is gay. True, he has many feminine like qualities but just because he is a man who acts somewhat feminine does not mean that he is gay, believe it or not. You believe he should be more manly, but I like the idea of a straight man being not so manly and virile. It kind of breaks down one of many unnecessary stereotypes.

Jacecool1: I am not sure what you mean. She went to England because she needed to, and I don't know who Alfie is?

Kristie: Yeah, thank you. Here it is.

Guest 3: Thanks, here it is!

Guest 4 & 5: I am happy you both are eager to read my story. Although maybe next time instead of just demanding the next chapter when you want it, and swearing at me, you say something about the story itself that is helpful to me in some way. Those reviews make me want to write, not the reviews that demand I upload when you of all people say so.

Guest 6: You did not leave a name, so I must refer to you as Guest. I chose your review to reply to last as I wanted to get into detail and answer your questions. But first of all, thank you for reviewing. It means a lot. I do try and keep the aspects and perks from the vampires in the original novels the same in this fanfiction. You asked why Bella would need the Volturi's resources such as transport when Vampires can travel all around the world by their own, why not go through water when being chased as it makes it impossible to be tracked. Well, before discovering the truth Isabella travelled on planes and in cars because they were there, for her to use. Before, she had no rush and no need to run on foot. Just because she could run non-stop all around the world, why bother when you have a private jet at your disposal. See what I mean? Sure, after discovering the truth and trying to stay hidden, using the Volturi's resources is not a good idea. She took the car out of the city because it was there, and she could focus on staying hidden. The reason she took her private jet was because it would get her out of the country faster than running to the ocean and swimming would have. She could have done both just as easily, but also she subconsciously feels safer in the air. In the air, there is no chance for the Volturi to show up and find her. In earlier chapters, Isabella did swim in water to hide her scent. When on her way to Forks, she wanted the wolves to capture her scent to find her. She wanted them there to apologise for attempting to kill them and asking them for escort to the Cullen's. To show respect. You also asked why bother staying in hotels if she does not need a room to sleep. That is true, but sometimes these hunts can take long periods of time and a lot of travelling. She had a hotel room to store her belongings when on a hunt, a private place to change clothing, to shower when dirty, to escape to if Sebastian's men were annoying her or she needed somewhere to wait until their next flight, etc. A place to stay hidden should the sun begin to shine. Understand? Your third question was why would she bother dying her hair or changing her locks, if other can identify her by scent. Well, like Isabella said, the disguise was to blend into a crowd. Sure, if the guards where there then they would capture her scent but in a crowd, they would be looking for Isabella. Not Katerina. Dying her hair, which I've decided she won't do, was just an idea. A lot of people change their hair or another physical attribute when going through great changes. It was just an idea I had. I hope these answers suffice. Please review again :}

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~Asher~


	16. Chapter 16

~ Isabella's POV ~

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If you had asked me whom I thought would offer to drive the entire way to Alaska with me as their only company, I would have guessed little Alice as she had been so eager to talk with me, but as the others had lead me to the garage in which several beautiful cars were parked, it had been Rosalie who had offered to drive.

Knowing that she disliked me – or who I had been – I told her it wasn't necessary yet she insisted. Alice had done the math at the same time and had chimed on about how another would have to ride with us also.

Though when she said that, Edward cut in and told us all he had chosen not to drive at all and instead would run the forty-five-hour journey to Denali. It was not that he couldn't do it, he could have done it and beat us there but the reasoning behind his decision was stupid. He did not want to sit within such close proximity to me, and true he could have sat in the other vehicle and had Alice or even Emmett join his wife in this car, as it would have made sense, he insisted and I later overheard him in conversation with Carlisle, explaining how he did not desire to sit with the picking and judgemental thoughts of the others.

Alice still wanted to join us either way, but Jasper had asked her aloud and in front of everyone to sit with him. He had done it in this manner so she would not refuse him, and although she was clearly unhappy with the arrangement and that 'Us Three Girls!" would not ride together, she let the argument drop.

So, I joined Rosalie and slid into the passenger seat of her ruby red convertible. It was too cold to have the top down, so she brought it up and flicked on the heating. The first several hours of the journey had been unbearable and full of awkward side glances and uncomfortable shifting in our seats. Rosalie and I drove in silence for hours on end, with the sound of the purring engine as our only companion. What made the whole thing even worse was that I was the passenger, at least Rosalie could focus on the road ahead. I, on the other hand, had been abandoned and left victim to the boredom I now felt creeping in; we may have been able to sit in absolute stillness until the end of time but that did not mean that I wanted to.

Finally, as the sun begun to set beyond the horizon and cast the sky into a pinkish glow, Rosalie spoke for the first time. "You don't mind me putting the radio on, do you?"

I let out an exasperated sigh of relief. "I thought you would never ask, the silence was killing me."

Rosalie arched a delicately plucked brow, "You could have asked hours ago, or turned it on yourself. I would not have minded." She turned on the radio. It was modern music, but soft and gentle and not awful. She faced the road again. I was sure she could have driven the entire way blindfolded, speeding, and would have still driven better than any human could have. She looked away to avoid my eyes.

"It's your car, I didn't want to bother you."

"Turning on the radio is impolite but trying to kill me a few weeks back, that was appropriate behaviour?" She was teasing, I knew this, but I was thankful for the smile on the edge of her plump lips to indicate as much. Without it, a part of me may have wondered if she truly was annoyed with me still.

I looked down and wrung my fingers, embarrassed by the way I acted. "I am sorry about that. Trying to kill you. I was in, I don't know, shock? I just –"

"Isabella. I'm toying with you. It's fine." She smiled my way and it felt nice, to be smiled at without malicious intent behind it.

I bit my lip, "Can I ask you a question?" her only response was a glance my way before turning down the volume. I took this as the 'Go ahead' "Why did you offer to drive with me?"

It seemed to be a question she needed a moment to answer. She shrugged her shoulders and spoke again. "I am going to be honest with you, Isabella. The others may be kinder to you, want to work with and help you, but none of them trust you entirely, even Alice, and you can't blame them for it."

She was right. Alice liked to joke and smile and critique my outfits but I could sense restraint from her just as I did the others. The tables may have turned and I may now be working against the coven I had called family, but I was still someone different to the human they had known. I was still a murderer, a monster, a vampire of the infamous Volturi Clan.

"I don't trust you, and though you come across overly confident – cocky, I find myself less infuriated by you than I was by Bella Swan."

"What did she do to make you hate her so much?" I found myself asking. "You failed to go into detail the first time back at the house?"

Rosalie leaned forward and I saw her looking at Carlisle's car two hundred yards ahead. I then felt the convertible slow at a steady pace until finally Carlisle's car turned the next corner and vanished from sight. I realized why she had let them go farther ahead, she did not want them to overhear the conversation we were about to have.

I wondered if Edward was close enough to listen in also, in his own unique way.

"I didn't hate you." She started and I felt myself stiffen. "I didn't hate _her."_ She corrected herself. "I just couldn't understand her no matter how hard I tried. I was…envious of her."

"Envious of a human girl? You?"

Bella was average looking as a human, and thought I was her updated model and far more beautiful than she, I was not blind. Sitting there in pink light, Rose was more beautiful than even Heidi.

She shook her head back and forth, "No, Isabella, I wasn't jealous of her looks. She was pretty, but I was jealous she was human. She had her whole life ahead of her – everything I wanted – and she was giving it away to become a monster."

"I agree with you on one aspect. That we are monsters. Whether we drink animal blood or human-" Her golden eyes met my red ones, the only notable difference in our lifestyles. "We are all monsters. But I don't understand why you would want mortality?"

"How can you not want it. I suppose you're like her in that way."

She did not mean it as an insult but I took it as one, though chose to let it slide. "I suppose that, depending on the vampire, the Thirst can be a curse but I can't imagine anything human Bella could do that you could not do to perfection, and for as long as you wished?"

"She could have children." Her smile was kind now, but sad, too.

Oh. Yes, I guess there was that. "You wanted to be a mother?"

Her face held an expression I could only describe as desperate longing. "Oh, yes! More than anything."

I could see Rosalie as a mother without a doubt. I had never thought about it before; I suppose that motherhood had never been an option for me even as a human. Well – I don't know what Bella Swan thought about childbirth but when _I_ was human, a servant girl in a cruel kingdom, I had never wanted children. That disinterest seemed to have transferred into my immortal life. Or was it Bella's disinterest in children that had resulted in my own?

Rosalie seemed to notice the way in which I gave in to my thoughts, and spoke again. "I suppose it's bizarre to you, and I can't possibly begin to fathom how your mind and thoughts work now, how you see the world, but once upon a time I was human and had the perfect life."

She stared out the window at the darkening clouds, her expression far away.

"It was nineteen thirty-three. I was young, and I was beautiful. My family was exceedingly wealthy for the time, I was well educated and adored by all, but by the time I was eighteen I could only focus on my future. I had hopes of meeting the man of my dreams and having a huge, flowery wedding, where everyone in town would watch me walk down the aisle on my father's arm and think I was the most beautiful thing they had ever seen. I would sit in my room at night, scribbling in my diary about how many children I would have and what elegant mansion within the city I would come to call my home. I imagined growing old and grey-haired with someone who would love me more than anyone ever had loved another person."

"Does sound like a picturesque life." I knew she did not get it. Otherwise she would be six-feet under by now.

"It was, and all I had to do was meet a man and fall in love to get the whole thing started. I suppose it went downhill from the moment my parents first introduced me to the man they intended to be my husband. Royce King the Second."

Her mouth twisted down at the name and it came out through her clenched teeth.

"His father owned the bank my father worked at, and nearly every other profitable business in town. After my father forgot to take his lunch to work with him one morning, I was pampered and preened before sent to deliver it to him. It was there I first lay eyes on Royce and he on me. I knew then we'd marry, and it would not be long before I could tell my parents they were to become grandparents as by that time I had come to yearn for my own little baby."

"What happened?"

"To shorten a long and unhappy story, I was blinded by the vision of a perfect life, and this impairment lead me to my death. One night on a walk home from visiting a close family friend and her new son, Henry, I happened to run into Royce and several of his old friends from out of town. It was late, and they had been drinking, I did not want to stay out in the cold greeting strange men I did not know. Royce, however, ignored my requests to be taken home and felt the need to show me off to all his friends, and the best way to do that was to remove my clothing."

I already knew where this was going before she had finished the sentence. I wanted to interrupt her and apologise for bringing up painful memories but Rosalie was so lost deep in thought she continued before I could bring myself to speak.

"Within moments his friends had me pinned to the wall as he tore my bag from my arm and the coat and shirt from my back." Rosalie then laughed at a thought, but then bit her lip and shook her head. "Then he hit me, he punched me hard across the mouth like some street fighter in the slums of the city, and I fell to the ground in tears. They seemed to enjoy that – the sound of my pain."

"Rosalie-"

"- I won't go into detail, I try not to think about that night very often. When they were done with me they left me in the gutter to die. I wanted to die, more than anything I wanted to die, but Carlisle found me. He'd smelled the blood and come to investigate. After only seconds of debate, he took me home and turned me."

She had yet to reach a century of being an immortal. I knew I was not yet a decade old but in my mind, I was an elder compared to her, who might as well have been a child. Yet she seemed so…wise. Wiser than she ought to have been. Wiser than I.

"The Cullen's, Esme and Edward, were in two minds about letting me stay. Hell, even I was unsure what I wanted after the realization of what I had become hit me."

"Do you want to know what I would have done?" I felt anger bubbling within me, coursing through my veins at the thought, the image, of her bloody on the street. Naked, abused, alone. "I would have killed them all." I said, grinding my sharp teeth. "I would have hunted them down one by one, and I would have made them beg for mercy."

A little of the sociopath in me shone through, but Rosalie seemed to understand, and it was that understanding look in her eye that made me realized something. "Which is exactly what you did." Not a question, a statement. Rosalie smirked and faced the road again as we turned onto another highway. The roads were busy despite the night.

"That's exactly what I did." She confirmed. "I didn't feed from them, I didn't want any part of them in me, you see. I saved Royce for last. I hoped that he would hear of his friends' deaths and understand, know what was coming for him. It was childish really. I wore a wedding dress I'd stolen for the occasion."

It was at this part of the story I burst out laughing. I could not contain it, and instead just dropped my head and clapped. Rosalie soon joined in, her laughter high and chime-like. Windchimes. "Very clever." I praised her.

"I was overly theatrical back then."

"I think that was perfect." She looked somewhat proud and I thought of how we found such joy in a tale about vengeful bride murdering men. No, not met. Not humans. Monsters.

"I'm sorry," she said suddenly in a chagrined voice. "I think that was the first time I've laughed while telling my story. When I've told others in the past they all seemed to cringe away when I went into detail about what I did to those disgusting men. To hear someone compliment and condone my actions is a nice surprise."

"They got off easy if you ask me." She turned fully to face me now and smiled. "Edward is going to hate me for saying this again but I think I prefer you over her."

I wondered if this was why she had so much more bitterness in her than the rest of them – because she'd been within reach of everything she'd ever wanted when her human life was cut short. At that point Carlisle's car could be seen ahead, and through the window the curly black locks of the back of Emmett's head.

"You may not have gotten to have the big wedding, fancy house or child. But you found your mate."

She saw what I was looking at and smiled. "I got more than I deserved with Emmett. He is everything I would have asked for if I'd known myself well enough to know what to ask for. He's exactly the kind of person someone like me needs. And, oddly enough, he needs me, too."

We had another day of driving ahead of us, but unlike the day before, I did not need to worry about getting bored.

* * *

By twilight that following day we were close. Rose – at one point during the journey she had requested I simply call her Rose if she had to call me Isabella. I had not been as inclined as the others had been to refuse – turned down the radio and titled her head my way, "We'll be arriving in about an hour," I tried not to let my joy show. Our joints could not stiffen but that did not mean over twenty-four hours in a moving vehicle was exactly cosy. I was thankful the journey was almost over; the first several hours had been torture but since the uncomfortable silence between Rose and I had turned into a detailed, lengthy conversation on her past, the ride has not been so terrible.

Rose and I spoke about many things that day, mostly about our history and memory. Memory was still a touchy subject for me, as the sheer sound of the word acted as a terrifying reminder that my entire history was a lie, though Rose did not treat it as such though we both knew it to be true. In truth, she seemed rather interested about the woman I now was and asked me many questions about my life and origin – and she wasn't afraid to get personal either.

By the time she told me we were almost there, I felt that maybe Rose understood me more than any of the others (Even Alice and Jacob) and was glad she had insisted we ride together.

The car climbed a hill then turned down towards the house that sat at the end of the road. I noticed a rock face wall along my side of the driveway and a cliff's edge on the other.

"Edward and the others are already here." I took notice of the bronze haired man approaching the other car. Rose nodded and pulled up alongside it. She turned to face me.

"Let's go."

I stepped out of the car and was greeted by a world of snow and ice. Forks had been on the onset of Fall but here in the mountain range of Alaska it felt as if we were in the middle of harsh winter. The views around the house were spectacular - It was a miracle the vehicles made it up the mountain range smoothly, as we were now surrounded by giant snowy dunes. The cold had stripped the trees bare of their leaves and dried up the bark. I overlooked the range and valley below; even amid summer it was still common for the residents here to see a layer of fresh, powdery snow coating the primordial mountain tops and cover the forests in a blanket of ice.

Truthfully, I had not expected anything less. I had memories of visiting Alaska in the past, most recently in the forties on a small leave from work that lasted three years. My decision to come was based on a story a handful of nomads I had come across told me. They had explained how during the winter certain towns fell under thirty plus days of absolute darkness, of night, and it had become tradition for this coven to attack and feed at will, massacring most of the townspeople.

At the time, I had been giddy with excitement at the possibility of a strange and new hunting experience, and had happily slaughtered alongside them. Now, as I took in again where I stood and what I was doing here, I understood those happy memories were probably lies also.

"Isabella?" Rose called and I realized the others had grouped and were waiting for me. I hurried over; The icy snow crunched under my worn boots, the only sound other than the miniscule noises the animals in the woodland made. Even from the road I could hear the fluttering of cold wings, the drumming of small heartbeats. I could even sense the narrow, watching glare of a rather large snowshoe hare hidden away in the thicket, watching me with mindless curiosity before it sensed the impending danger and leapt back into the denseness of the snow-veiled woods.

Already, Edward and his family had noticed the shift in the way Rose and I spoke to one another. Edward probably was playing through our entire conversation in her head, angry that the one Cullen to never connect with his mate was now the closest to her new and improved replacement. I smiled a little smugger.

I wiped my dry fingers over my eyes, brushing away the flakes clinging to my lashes, then turned to take in the home. The house itself was also spectacular and I found myself preferring it over the Cullen's traditional design. The Denali's home was made from several different materials, the apparent ones being grey cobblestone and slate lining the rooftops and the garage walls, and a sleek smooth wood with a reddish-orange tinge much like the russet colour of Jacob Black's fur when a wolf.

The glass front doors opened the Denali's emerged, probably having heard our car engines long before we arrived. They were dressed to suit the weather, wearing warm leathers and lush furs, a mixture of beige, brown and grey.

"My friends, what a pleasant surprise!" Eleazar said though his hard eyes were on me.

His wife Carmen slid her arm through his, but the positon in which she stood made it obvious that she was prepared to attack at any moment. I remembered grabbing her leg and throwing her into the husband she now clung to. The three blonde sisters all stood together too, strength in numbers, but would I fight if it came to it? If they all suddenly turned on me?

The answer to that question was one I did not know how to find the answer to.

"I hope you don't mind us dropping in unexpectedly," Esme said and Carmen let go of her husband and went to hug her. It was strange, seeing the two of them hug and smile at one another like old friends. We Immortals developed mating bonds with others we came to love but it was rare to find vampires who had only platonic feelings for one another. Who were friends.

I realized I had no friends, and it saddened me more than I cared to admit.

"Not at all," Carmen said.

"You came back after all." Kate said to me, addressing the gorgeous elephant in the room.

"And with an army surely on the way to kill us all." Irina growled.

"Irina!" Tanya snapped at her sister.

I nodded and stepped forward, addressing them all. Here it goes. "I'm back. I want to apologise for what I did. I wasn't in the right mind." No pun intended. "I'm more collected now, and want only to ask for help. There is no army." I wondered if the uncomfortable feeling that washed over me every time I needed to apologise would ever diminish.

"We understand." Tanya said, her eyes pleading me to not make her regret these words.

"Please, won't you call come inside." Eleazar stepped back and slowly the other turned to the house. Instead of waiting outside as I had the Cullen's, I moved to stand by Rose's side and she seemed to familiarize herself with this and just smiled. "Beautiful place, huh?"

Changing the subject in a futile attempt at distracting me. Thank Gods for Rosalie.

* * *

Much like the Cullen home, the interior of the Denali's was open-plan layout and full of beautiful antiques. The front doors opened immediately into a small, narrow foyer in which we were greeted by two sets of stairs, one leading to the floor above and the other to the back of the house which appeared to be a lower level than the rest, presumably built into the mountain.

To my immediate right a large dining room and open kitchen space beyond that. The styling seemed to be a mixture of both old camp and modern day Ikea, with a delicately carved wooden dining table with built in benches, and kitchen full of mahogany cupboards and marble countertops.

We walked that way, passed large wooden beams holding up the floor above, and then stepped down into the living area. A large stone fireplace had been built between the two rooms, acting as the only wall; the fire was lit and the heat unusually comforting. The room smelt of burning wood and daisies and blood. But not human.

I had thought the inside would be far more extravagant, but instead offered me a very cabinlike feel. A large, beautiful cabin, nonetheless.

Feeling obligated by the rules of social conduct to say something to the coven that had welcomed me into their home no questions asked, I spun on Carmen following us into the room. Immediately she – and others, I sensed – sprang into action and were on their toes. I suspected that if I had thought to lift my hand as if to shake her own, the others would have had no quarrels about lunging and pinning me to the ground.

I understood their distrust but that did not mean it felt good to be seen so evil. I could taste the tension in the air, willingly it to defuse. To help it along I scoffed a little laugh. "Calm down, children. We're all friends here." I even lifted my palms to show I meant her no ill will. "I just wanted to say you have a beautiful home."

"Oh, why thank you. Esme helped design it."

"You did an amazing job." I praised her, then I shot to the armchair in the corner where I could sit by the window, a safe enough distance from the others to not feel like I was overstepping my boundaries.

Before anyone had a chance to say a word, the sound of small footsteps echoed through the house and I realized what it was before it entered the room. A cat. That would explain the blood. I was unfamiliar with what breed but she was exquisitely beautiful. Not exactly black, more charcoal coloured, with large eyes and soft looking fur. She had clearly met the Cullen's before as she barely paid them any mind, instead her entire focus was on the stranger in her home.

"Who is this?" I asked, fighting back a smile as the beat leapt up and onto my lap, arching her back so I could scratch her behind. I had never been a cat lover, nor a dog lover. Never an animal lover in general, thus my wanting to kill and skin one of the Shape-Shifters upon meeting them – but there was something about this creature I liked.

"Astrid." Tanya beamed. The cat settled in my lap, content with whom she had chosen to stroke her. "She seems to like you."

"What breed is she?"

"A Russian Blue cross, domestic. She's been with us many years that cat, last longer than any other we have had." Kate leaned close to me to pet Astrid but the cat then leapt away with a hiss.

"She doesn't like me. I think she can sense my gift." The cat only returned to my lap when Kate moved her hand away, eyeing her owner up carefully, warningly.

"So what happened, Isabella, why did you return?" I did not particularly want to go over the story again, but did so just to fill the Denali coven in on why I had chosen to return to them. Astrid's purring distracted me and kept me occupied enough to not feel awkward in the room.

"How are you taking it?" Carmen leaned forward to address me, "Coming to term with this hard truth?" I realized she meant the lie, and suddenly even Astrid's soft fur could not take away the panic that spread throughout my body, rooting itself deep into my soul.

I just shrugged a response and shook my head, not wanting to confess even to those who knew me as a fragile human that I had a mental and emotional breakdown. Tanya just nodded, not for my benefit but for Carmen's, a clue to her surrogate mother to take my response as an acceptable answer to not wait for a verbal one.

"Eleazar," Carlisle looked to his friend. "You said over the phone that you were looking into something you believed may have something to do with the alteration of Isabella's memories?"

"Yes!" Eleazar was excited, "A thought came to me and I thought I'd consider it, and I believed I may have discovered something of importance, there is a problem with it but I will explain anyway." He sat down on the arm of the sofa by his wife. "About two hundred years ago after Carmen and I left the Volturi, but before we met Tanya, Kate and Irina, I went back to Volterra for a short meeting with Aro regarding a newborn he had acquired at the time. I found it strange, asking me all the way back after many years just to meet a newborn, but when I did It became apparent to me why."

"Who was this Newborn?" asked Emmett.

"His name was Mordecai."

If my heart still worked it would have skipped a beat. I tried to remain calm. Kai.

"He had been young and confident and Aro's interest in such an outspoken, rule-breaking newborn surprised me until I first lay eyes upon him. He was Gifted, and this boy had a very powerful gift indeed. We called it Compulsion. He could toy with the minds and emotions of humans, bend them entirely to his will. He had used it only to convince those he fed upon not to scream and others to open themselves to him sexually should he find himself attracted to them. Aro had summoned me back to determine just how talented he was, the true extent of this extraordinary power should the boy develop his skills. Only now do I see how, with that exact training and practice, he could learn to re-write a human's mind altogether and make them believe they are one person when they are not. It would make sense."

I couldn't stay quiet any longer. I was trusting these people to keep me hidden and help me in any way they could, and I was keeping things from them. Important, vital information. I had to speak up. I had to trust them if they were going to trust me.

"I have something to confess. I already know about Mordecai. He is a current member of the Volturi Guard and has been for the past two centuries, in my memory at least. In reality I do not know how long he has been with them, presumably since you met him, Eleazar."

"You already knew?" Rose wondered.

"I had suspected that he was responsible for…me. It would seem most likely."

"Then why didn't you tell us?"

"I wanted to wait until we heard what Eleazar had to say. I didn't want to bring him into this if we didn't need to." It was a childish excuse but the only one I had. I did not want to expose Kai to further danger.

"Why?"

"Because I care for him, and it was he who helped me escape Volterra when Aro sent the guard after me."

"Well if what you say is true then Mordecai does seem the most likely cause for this change, though there is a hole in my theory, as I said before. Isabella here is a shield! Her mind is so protected no psychic attack can harm her in any form. Edward, you cannot read her mind, and I suspect Aro cannot either, correct?" Eleazar appeared curious, but also lost.

"Yes," I gulped.

"Nor can Jane and Alec incapacitate her; Mordecai should not have been able to achieve such a task… unless…" His gaze shifted to me, a look in his eye that had not been there before. "Isabella willingly allowed this to happen."

"No," Edward said, speaking up for the first time since agreeing to come to Denali. "No, she wouldn't do that. _My_ Bella wouldn't do that."

"Edward, we don't know the truth about what happened. She may have had no choice, or-" He shook his head, cutting off Tanya and sneering at me with disgust.

"She wouldn't leave me; she wouldn't let me – us all – go through life thinking she was dead just to become one of us."

"I don't know why she did it, all I know is she did and now she's me." I tried.

"You're right, you're totally right. It doesn't matter how he did it, what matters is that he took you away from me, and I'm going to kill him for it."

"You won't touch him!" I gasped aloud with a little humour in my voice and rage replacing the fear that had threatened to overcome me. Fire burning through those roots deep in my soul. Astrid sprung out of my hands as if sensing that rage. "You will not lay a hand on him, Edward, I would die before I let that happen, I swear it. That man may have sacrificed himself to save me anyway."

"It doesn't matter, he killed Bella and I won't let him live for that. He took her from me."

"Maybe he didn't! Maybe she went to Aro and asked him to change her, to have Kai erase her and make me! Maybe she got tired of you being so dominant over her."

"You can't speak for her. You don't speak for her!"

"Both of you, calm down, now." Esme rose to her feet and I was surprised she spoke to me with sure anger. "You are guests in this house, both of you, and your blatant lack of respect for this place and the hospitality you have been given is embarrassing. Apologise, the both of you."

The thousand-year-old leader of the greatest vampire clan in the world wanted to turn on Esme and kill her for even daring to raise her voice at me. I wanted to kill Edward, I wanted to burn him, but I was sure this newfound friendship I had developed would Rose would not last very long should I kill them, and I liked Rose. Esme was right, of course, and I had promised myself I would at least try to be a better person now, be more like them.

"I apologise for my rudeness." Edward said to Eleazar and Carmen, then nodded to three sisters.

"As do I. I am sorry." The tension did not settle until Edward ran a hand through his hair and said.

"Please, excuse me for a moment." He left the house and I heard him walking at a human pace about the garden. I did not look out of the window and instead sat back down slowly. I loosened my grip on the armchair, careful not to tear the furniture and have to apologise for that too.

"Well, to change the subject, Kai isn't dead." Alice said and we all turned to face her to only now notice she had fallen into a vison. Her golden eyes were empty, yet seeing a world no one else could. The future.

"What do you mean?" I asked, remembering she had mentioned Kai. "What do you see?"

"Edward?" Carlisle asked. I turned to see Edward standing back at the top of the steps leading into the room, pulling his cell from his trouser pocket. He unlocked and begun tapping.

"Alice will explain," his voice was rushed, panicked. "I'm going to call Jacob." He vanished again outside.

"What is it? What's happening?" Tanya begged.

"I've been keeping a closer eye on Charlie since Isabella found Victoria so close to their old home, but now there's someone else heading for the Chief's house. I think it's him. Kai."

"Oh fuck, what does he look like?" I did not know if I wanted it to be him or not.

"Oh, you know: tall, dark, handsome. Thick black hair and cheekbones even I'm jealous of."

"That's him." Kai, away from the Volturi and for the first time in Gods' knows how long? And in Forks of all places. Near Bella Swan's – and by extension, my – human father, Charlie.

"What's happening, Alice?" Jasper urged.

"He's not hurting Charlie; he's just speaking with him. He's…he's pretending to be an old friend of yours from school. Charlie isn't in danger from him…Kai's the one in danger!"

"What?"

"The Pack, he slipped by them unnoticed but soon they'll be on their way to Charlie's house to kill Kai. I…I can't see Kai's future after that. I... I think they're going to kill him." The vision ended and Alice looked straight at me. "I'm so sorry."

I didn't know how she knew Kai and I were more than companions, it didn't matter to me if she knew. Hell, if Edward knew. What mattered now only was that at some point soon Kai would enter Forks and be hunted down and destroyed by the Pack, by Jacob who knew nothing of my feelings for him.

"Edward's calling the Pack to tell them not to hunt him down, but a strange vampire in town? They won't listen."

Kai had risked his life to save mine. There was absolutely no way on this Earth I was going to let him die now.

"Isabella!"

By the time they called for me I was out of the house and running, running at a blinding speed down the driveway. When I reached the end I wasted no time and launched myself from the cliffs edge, cracking the earth beneath me as I went. The world passed me by, the wind suddenly harsh against my face and ears as I plummeted, farther and father, higher than I think I ever had before.

The impact shook the earth and it hurt, it hurt like a bitch. I found myself disorientated, the world made no sense and would not until the cracks covering my body- no matter how deep – healed. But when they did I was running through the forest. Soon I was miles away, pouring every ounce of strength into my legs as I cried tear-less cries, hoping, praying, begging anyone who would listen to my soul to let me make it in time.

* * *

Asher's Note:

Hello Everyone! Chapter Sixteen is here. So, a few days pass in this chapter, the first two are spent on the road and consist of Rosalie and Isabella developing a relationship they never had when she was human. We delve into Rosalie's horrific past and Isabella begins to understand her bitterness to her old, human self. I tried not to copy the way Rosalie explains her history as she did to Bella in eclipse, but they are similar. We also reunite with the Denali's and we discover that Eleazar already knew of Kai and had suspected him all along. Though now Kai is in Forks, and Alice has foreseen his death. Please review and let me know what you think! Thanks!

* * *

Responding to your reviews:

Goldielover: That is what it would appear to be. I agree, I would have referred an actual man of around twenty than a boy of seventeen. We know Kai is away from the Volturi and almost at Forks!

Traceybuie: He does need to get a grip, aha. Though remember that Kai's orders come from Aro. Perhaps Kai did not want to change Isabella's memories, but maybe it was that or death. What would you do?

XXTMSXX: Thank you! I did have a wonderful Halloween but may have had one too many drinks! I hope you did too! Thank you for being so understanding with uploading times! As you can see, Kai will be returning very shortly! He may have wanted to tell her, he tried in the woods to tell her something. But if he had told her any sooner than Isabella, who one hundred percent believed her memories to be true before leaving for her mission, would have spoken to Aro about this. I doubt Aro would have taken kindly to Kai trying to expose the truth. I thought the same thing when writing the scene between Jacob and Isabella, although I believe that their relationship will stay platonic. I mean, Jacob will always love her but he loved his Bella. Not Isabella the vampire. I also feel Jacob mourned her when she 'died' and he eventually moved on. I also don't know about Isabella's dedicated, but I know the love triangle with Jacob is dead. Especially since Jacob may not be single! ;)

TheMrsDSalvatore: He did not see her with Kai as he cannot read her mind and no one else knows of her relationship with Kai, though he did break up with her in a horrible way, that is true. I think he's just angry now because upon first seeing her he thought his true love was back, but now he's beginning to understand Isabella is a different person and it's the loss he's angry about again. Thanks for your review!

LRK: Thank you so much, it is here! The next, I am not sure!

Macey: Thank you for your review. That is true! The tables have turned! Jacob was right for that scene, I was going to have Rose be it but her connection with Isabella begun in this chapter, so it was Jacob instead. He was her best friend after all.

Alice: Hello Alice, thanks for reviewing! That is fine and thank you so much. That scene was fun to write, and yes! The possibilities.

Sandra46: Thank you so much, cannot wait to hear from you again!

* * *

~Asher~


	17. Chapter 17

~ Isabella's POV ~

* * *

I ran nonstop for almost two full days. I did not slow, not by a single second. I soared as fast and as hard as I could until I could go no quicker. As I hurried my way through Alaska and Canada's forests, I wondered if I was too late.

Had my leap of faith granted me precious seconds as I'd originally assumed, or in turn stolen them away? Would it have been better to slowly make my way down to ground level, rather than throw myself unthinkingly from the highest mountain range in all of Alaska; I'd known subconsciously the fall would cause no permanent damage but the impact from hitting the earth miles beneath me had sent rockets of pain jolting through my knees and cracks spider webbing up my shins.

It had destroyed the soles of the tennis shoes I had been wearing – which I later left behind to run barefoot anyway. I preferred to go barefoot, especially when in a desperate rush such as this. I'd leapt from the crater I'd made and started to run. If I had been smart, I would have waited until those cracks healed to continue running, but in that moment, I had not been smart, or thinking about my own safety. I had – and still to this second –only thought of Mordecai and how he was more than likely already dead.

The vision Alice had seen had yet to come to pass, meaning that there was still a chance for me to make it in time. I ran through the day and night, using the cover of the forest to hide, but when it came to the city I had no quarrels about jumping rooftop to rooftop. Not caring If anyone saw.

I was close to Forks now, only a couple dozen miles left before I would pass through the border and into town; it was midday, but the sun had yet to show its face. The sound of the storm in the distance was enough to let me know I was getting close.

I wondered if they had bothered to listen to Kai at all or had the beasts just torn him to pieces? It mattered not. If Kai was dead then each of those mutts would be sure to follow, I could promise that. Forget a truce, fuck alliance. I didn't care if they believed Kai to be a danger to the people of this quaint, peaceful little town. If Mordecai was dead, I would unleash havoc and bring chaos to everyone unfortunate enough to live here. It would start with the wolves, then with their friends and family, then everyone living on the Quileute reservation.

Once the streets ran red with blood and there were no beating hearts remaining, word would spread and The Volturi would come. Let them come. I shall be waiting.

* * *

Unlike before I was not met with a deep, chorus of howling from the wolf pack when I crossed through the border into Forks. I expected to catch the sound of their strong, beating hearts or their paws drumming against the earth on their way through the forest to find me, yet neither came. I gave it a minute, then two, yet the forest made no noise out of the ordinary.

This was how I knew something was wrong.

It was only with the absence of the pack in mind I allowed myself to consider an alternative to Alice's vision. What if she had underestimated Kai? He was one of the most powerful immortals known to our kind; it was entirely reasonable to contemplate the idea of him slaughtering the entire pack. Surely, he would not have travelled to Forks alone, without an entourage of low-ranking guards at his disposal? Perhaps even more talented, valued members such as Felix, Dimitri or maybe Jane herself.

For all I knew, Kai was alive and he had rid the town of Forks of its supernatural protectors. I wondered how the Cullen's would react should this be the case? Would they turn on Kai and the Guard and avenge their dead allies, or would they simply let it go peacefully? Would they turn on me should I chose to protect Kai? I was struck with a more important question: who would I stand by?

Finally, I crashed through the last of the trees and found myself standing on the Cullen lawn. I darted around the impala and stopped for the first time in days, my entire body still buzzing with energy and adrenaline, my feet almost ached with the need to keep moving. I stopped breathing and froze, listening to the world around me. It took me only a second, but the wind carried with it a dozen heartbeats, and I followed them to the back of the house.

When I rounded the corner, I stopped again in my tracks but out of confusion at the scene before me.

The wolves were all here and surrounding a dark-haired figure lying on the ground before them. A hundred thoughts and emotions, varying from forms of panic and horror and anger to confusion and bloodlust. It was only a millisecond after I realized the wolves were no standing around the figure…but laid around it, dotted out across the garden. I could still hear their beating hearts, and taste no exposed blood in the air to indicate they were dead nor dying.

Frowning, I stepped closer. It would appear they were…sleeping?

Then there he was. Kai. It felt strange, seeing him here in Forks of all places. He seemed out of place. An extraordinary man in an unextraordinary town. I scanned every inch of his perfect body, every strand of hair, the curve of his cheek and square of his jaw, the wrinkles in his palms and the familiar, overwhelming aroma I had come to crave.

Both corners of his mouth twitched up, flashing those child-like dimples of his I adored.

"Isabella! It's about time, love." His eyes snapped open, bright and red and glistening. He rocked back then sprung to his feet and dusted the dirt from his leather jacket. My eyes flickered back to the wolves at his feet, at Jacob who lay unconscious and vulnerable, yet content.

"What did you do to them?" I gapped.

"I made them go to sleep."

I cocked a brow.

"It's quite a funny story, actually. They came charging at me, but I've seen beasts like these before, you see, and knew If I could find the Alpha I'd be fine. Once I realized it was that one there," he pointed with his foot to Samuel's black wolf form sprawled out a few feet away, "I implemented the uncontrollable need to sleep and he dropped like that." Kai snapped his fingers. "Guess I was lucky the link took the others down too, would have been in a pickle if they had individual minds."

He set off giggling. I did not join in. When his chuckle died out, he shrugged and wafted off the thought as he stepped over Jacob. "One of those 'You had to be there.' Moments." His eyes snapped up to me and narrowed. "What are you wearing?"

I glanced down at myself and felt a rush of embarrassment at how awful I looked. He had only ever seen me with sleek, tight, complimentary items of clothing, but now I stood before him wearing the same clothes I'd been wearing for almost five whole days, the human teenage outfit I'd initially used as a disguise. Except now the T-shirt wad creased to hell and branches from the forest had snagged at it and torn the white material. My bare feet were covered in sludge and dirt, the bottom of my jeans wet and stained.

I was a mess.

"I – You're not dead?"

"Dead? Of course I'm not dead. You don't have to sound so disappointed, either."

I heard the humming of car engines, then slamming of car doors. "Isabella?" Edward called through the air. I was surprised to hear them so soon, they must have been driving at an extremely alarming and illegal rate to catch up to me so soon.

"I'm here." I said in a whisper low enough for only those with enhanced hearing to catch. Seconds later they too rushed to the garden, following my scent and voice. When they rounded the corner, they stopped, frozen in their place just as I had. Edward stood at the head of his family, taking in myself, the comatose werewolves and Mordecai standing a few feet behind me.

"Ah – Hello, Cullen's." Kai's voice bounced off the house and the trees, echoing across the dry and cold ground. No one spoke. No one moved, until Edward took a step.

His lip curled upwards, revealing his pearly white teeth clenched together. His golden eyes narrowed not on me but on Kai at my side. The truth struck home, Edward was reading Kai's mind and more than likely seeing…. well, everything. He had known that Kai had been the guard to help me during my escape, but he had not known – could not have guessed – that the reasoning behind it was our feelings for once another. I could see it in Edward's face, he was seeing every moment, every word, every touch, every kiss.

Every time I took the man behind me into my body in a way he never had with Bella.

Then he snapped.

He was sprinting – no, charging – straight at us with a different kind of bloodlust in his eyes. Alice screamed half a second too late, and though his family were mere inches away they too were not fast enough to stop him. I felt Kai tense as he stepped forward, arching his back and dropping low enough into a position of defence, one I recognized to mimic Edward's.

They were going to kill one another.

I had nanoseconds to think, to move, to act; to decide what course of action I could take. I should have thought about it, should have attempted to reason with Edward though his loss of control was obvious. Instead of doing either of those things, I gave into my instincts and moved. Barging Kai aside with my shoulder, I stepped straight into Edward's path; he was hurtling towards us at a speed so great even I could not have withheld him.

All I had known was that Edward was attempting to kill Kai and this I could not allow.

Still facing him, I twisted my upper body – torso and shoulders – around almost completely until the strain informed me I had reached my limit, in that same second I gathered all the strength I could muster, poured every ounce of it into my right arm and when Edward's last footsteps got close enough, when he was too late to figure out what I was doing, I bounced upright with a strained grunt. The back of my hand collided solidly with the side of Edward's head. The blow itself could have decapitated him, though luckily the rest of his body gave in to the force that carried him up off the ground and through the open air.

He hit the ground with a deafening boom that shook the trees and trembled the earth. But was on his feet within seconds, his hair dishevelled and his teeth barred. For the first time, I finally saw the monster in him.

He went to move but was tackled by his coven mates in a similar way to I when the Cullen's and Denali's first took me captive. He yelled unintelligibly, throwing himself from side to side in a failed attempt at shaking off his family. They ushered him away, saying his name repeatedly.

Alice's voice rang out over the others. "Edward. Stop! If you don't you'll die!" This seemed to capture his attention as he tore his eyes away Kai and I, and looked deep into his sisters, no longer seeing red. "If you insist on fighting him, Bella will choose his side and she will kill you. I've seen it. Do you see?"

An unbearably long pause.

"Fine." He almost yelled through clenched teeth. Alice must have seen it, otherwise he would not have stopped, of this I was certain. It gave me a strange, somewhat reassuring grip on the situation, knowing that if it came to a fight Edward, as skilled as he was, would loss his life to me. I did not want to take it – well, not as much as I had upon first meeting him on the street my first night in Forks – but that did not mean I wouldn't if I needed to.

"Calmed down?" I yelled his way. "The both of you?" Kai just shrugged and flashed an open-mouthed grin.

"I'm always calm."

I rolled my eyes. "Have you?" I asked Edward again. I would not stand down until I was sure. He took a full minute, but wiped the dirt from his face and gave a single nod.

"Good." Now that I had believed Edward had enough self-control to not attack anyone anytime soon, I spun on the spot and swung. The punch was not something Kai had been expecting, I had not even planned on doing it, it just happened. He grabbed his chin and wiggled it from side to side.

"What the hell was that for?" He said with a bittersweet smile.

"That was for tricking Alice, making me believe you were actually going to die."

"It worked, didn't it? I'm just lucky you cared enough about me enough to come running." I grabbed him by the collar, not sure whether I wanted to throttle him or kiss him. He made the decision for me. He grabbed my hips and pulled me against him with a possessiveness that overwhelmed me. "Kai!" I tried to fight him off but the moment our mouths met there was no denying this was what I wanted. My lips were desperate and starved, and I melded into him and accepted the kiss, pressing his body into mine.

It was an open display of affection I had not given to him before, and this hesitance to return the embrace – though lasting only momentarily – reminded me of his shock at the compliment I had given him upon completing the sketch of me. The sketch I still had in my bag.

As I pressed my face against the warmth of his chest and felt his chin resting atop my head, I suddenly thought back to the day I had last seen him. At first I thought only of how he confessed he knew I was in love with him, the way he sacrificed his freedom and took the lives of two of our guard to give me a chance of survival. Those images, however beautiful, were pushed to the back of my mind and replaced with the idea that he had lied to me. That these feelings I felt could have been nothing but manipulations of my free will, imbedded into my subconscious years ago, only to surface now.

I pulled back and swung again. This second blow also sent Kai rolling across the ground, though he was too close to the river he went over the edge and splashed into the water. The stream was not moving quickly, yet he still fumbled around almost like a human would until he found his footing and surfaced again. He spat out the water with a laugh, then ran his hands through his blackest of black hair, slicking it to his head before he then shook out the curls.

"That!" I screamed, "Was for lying to me and taking my memories in the first place."

"Has it only been four days? God, I missed you."

"Shut up!" I groaned on. I heard Kai heave himself out of the water, but I could not anticipate his movements until he was behind me. My angered thoughts had distracted me from my senses, and though I spun to face him I was too late to stop him from hauling me up into his arms and throwing us both back into the cold river.

I was submerged for only seconds but it been enough for me to tell the water was freezing cold. We vampires were bothered little by temperatures other than the heat of an open flame. The cold did not stun me, nor did it numb me in any way as it would a human, but that did not mean I wasn't pissed as hell. I kicked up from the rocky ground and broke the surface, throwing my now wet hair back over my head.

Kai was by my side and – and laughing. I had not heard him laugh so much in, well, ever. It was a loud, hearty laugh that seemed to thaw the frozen world. Mellow, and soft, unlike the only other laugh I had heard recently, Aro's. He brought his fists down, splashing me with water, before reaching to embrace me.

"Get off me!" I literally snarled at him, a hollow, rumbling sound coming from deep within my chest. He stopped laughing, but did not stop smiling. What was he so giddy about anyway? I shoved him away, then leapt from the river and landed firmly on the ground.

The Cullen's looked just as amused, but dropped any expression when they took note of my own. Even Edward had stopped sulking to smirk. Soaking wet from head to toe, I balled my hands into fists and stormed towards the house. "I'm taking a shower." I didn't care to ask if I could, I doubted any of them would be brave enough to stop me, or scold me for my impoliteness.

"I will lay out some clothes for you." Rosalie called. Did I detect humour in her tone? Friend of not, I'd beat the woman for laughing at me. I decided to let it go. I felt a twinge of guilt at trudging wet and slippery mud throughout the house, as Esme would not be pleased and out of the few of them whom had respected and treated me as my own person – not Bella Swan – Esme was one of them.

If it bothered them so much, I would pay to have it cleaned, but in that moment, I just had to get away.

I just had to shower.

* * *

As I made my way through the house and up the stairs I could hear Mordecai outside, approaching the Cullen's with caution. "Hello Cullen's. It's a pleasure to see you again."

His enthusiasm was not met with equal excitement. "Again? I don't recall ever meeting you before, nor do my family?" Carlisle asked. I trudged onto the landing and tore the T-shirt over my head. I balled it up and dropped it to the ground as I headed for the guest bathroom.

"Ah, well, that's a long story. One I would prefer to tell with Isabella present, and in dry clothes, if you don't mind lending me some." Even as I shimmied out of my wet, irritating jeans I could hear Kai and the others slowly making their way towards the house.

"Of course, come inside. We will see what we have for you." I could hear Carlisle's distrust in his voice, but also knew him to be too trusting in other immortals to ask Kai to wait elsewhere.

I stepped into the shower and turned on the hose and let out a long breath; I lifted my head up and let the hot water fall over my face. It had been days since I showered and had a change of clothes, and just to be able to wash my hair felt like a luxury I had been unable to afford in a long time, when in reality it had been just less than a week.

Though I had washed away the filth and I no longer smelt of the forest, I spent an extra few minutes beneath the water just to listen in on the conversation the others were having below. By now I had realized what a stupid move I had made, leaving Kai alone with the Cullen's (especially Edward) but he was a skilled enough immortal to be able to defend himself, not that I thought Carlisle or Esme would allow anyone to harm him having known exactly what he meant to me.

In fact, the Cullen's seemed inclined to listen to anything Kai had to say.

"I saw you die." Alice butt in, interrupting something Rosalie was saying.

Kai took a moment before responding. "You did, because I wanted you too. When I showed up in Forks early this morning and realized you all had run off somewhere, I knew I needed to find you. But I hadn't the first clue where you could have gone. So, if I couldn't come to you, then you would come to me. I took a risk, hoping that Isabella cared enough for me she would not let me die by the hand of those giant creatures out there. Though I knew _you_ wouldn't be looking into my future, but you would be into Isabella's fathers. I hoped chatting with him would be enough for you to see me, latch onto my future and see the wolves coming to kill me. I was in no real danger though, I had it all under control."

He went on to explain how he had singled out the Alpha and used his gift to trick them all into sleeping. It was clever, I hated to think.

I stepped out of the shower, and reached for a pearly white towel from the cabinet to my side. I felt fresh and clean; the steam and hot water had loosened my shoulders and guided me away from the edge. As I towel dried my hair, Rose's voice called through the door. "Isabella? I've left you some clothes out on the bed. I'm sorry if they aren't quite to your taste but I'm afraid we're all out of black robes." I scoffed but was in no mood to think a witty response. Mumbling a thank you, I stepped out of the bathroom and into the hall. The air out here felt cool against the back of my neck and my bare breasts and stomach.

"Whoa!" Rosalie spun, covering her eyes. "Cover yourself up, woman, do you have no dignity?"

"On the contrary, I have too much, some would say." I wrapped the towel neatly around me and tucked in the corner. She just rolled her eyes and made for the stairwell. As I stepped into the bedroom I heard the wolves. Immediately, I flew to the window and pulled the curtain back carefully as everyone around here seemingly had devoted their love to this face and seeing the rest of the body surely would have been an unexpected treat.

The wolves were awake, and they were furious. Several of the Cullen's were already on the porch, attempting to reason with Sam. I guessed the others were watching Kai.

"They're angry," Edward voiced their thoughts as he stepped into my line of sight.

"Duh." I mumbled, but it was loud enough for him to peer over his shoulder right at me. Instead of turning away, I puckered my lips. His mouth twisted into fine line. He had done very well as to not stare at my breasts.

"They claim that Kai entered their lands uninvited, and him being here is putting the people of Forks in danger." He said. Sam and the wolves huffed in agreement.

Carlisle stepped forward. "They are in no danger. The vampire we have inside is a colleague of Isabella's. He is here to offer guidance, to shed some light on the truth." No change. This information meant very little to them. Their only focus was the safety of their people, which I admired.

"Whilst in Forks, I will take responsibility for him." Carlisle urged, "I understand your concern, but we need his help. He will not harm a human, he will not speak to one." Still sensing the Pack's refusal, he added. "I bet the treaty on it." This seemed to arouse curiosity and hesitation from the pack, the members ceased growling and looked to their alpha. I guessed this was a huge deal. I mean, he did just wager the very treaty that kept his family safe from battle. He was betting a lot on Kai, and I then decided that if Carlisle could not keep his promise, I would keep it for him.

I would not allow Kai to hunt in Forks. But then again, if he could not then neither could I.

After another painful minute of listening to Edward translate, they had finally come to an understanding and Sam was willing to let Kai stay – on the condition Jacob stay as witness and another few wolves would patrol the grounds, just in case. Carlisle thanked Sam, again and again, and once more I found myself confounded by their alliance. Carlisle really did consider these creatures equals.

"You're risking a truce with those beasts, just to keep me alive?" Kai said from below.

"Yes, but I only bargained because I know you will not harm a living soul. If you even thought about it, and we would know, I will end you myself." Surprisingly, Carlisle had said those words.

Jacob hurried off to shift into human form when the others left, and I decided to finally get dressed. The clothes were not to my taste: dark blue jeans which admittingly, weren't awful, but Rosalie had left me a horrible button-down red and grey plaid shirt. The shirt was hideous, and I was half tempted to just to collect the bag I'd left in the car, but did not want to give Edward nor Kai the pleasure of seeing me shirtless. I made the shirt do by rolling up the sleeve to the elbow and unbuttoning several buttons from the collar.

Not bothering to put on any socks or shoes, I ran my fingers through my hair to tame it before leaving the bedroom and making my way downstairs. The sitting room was in silence, each of the Cullen's with a weary expression on their face, Kai, however, looked pleased and content. The happiest I had seen him in a long time, if our time beneath the covers did not count. He hadn't showered, but had dried himself off and changed too. He wore a shirt which was most definitely Carlisle's, I did not even need his scent to tell so. A steel blue colour, which matched well with his dark blue denim jeans; he'd borrowed a pair of simple dark brown shoes from Carlisle also. His hair had dried a tangled mess atop his head, his black curls springing out in every direction. His hair usually curled when he did not dry it properly.

He was sat in the corner chair, the place I had been forced to sit on previous run ins with the Cullen's. It was silly but I felt a rush of joy as I no longer was the untrustworthy one, to be watched and guarded at all times. "There she is," Kai ran his gaze over me, undressing me with those deep crimson eyes.

Though he tried to be subtle, we all felt Edward stiffen, hear the rip of the armchair he stood behind as his fingers tore through the material.

"Isabella?" Alice said then, before anyone else had a chance to speak. I spun her way. She and Jasper sat on one of the couches, she with her legs tucked beneath and Jasper with his arm around her, his eyes still on Kai. I could feel Jasper's influence in the air, settling the room, inducing a calm and peaceful atmosphere. I hated it. "Sorry, for calling you Bella out there. It slipped my mind."

It had not even occurred to me that she had called me Bella, not until now. It did annoy me, but the time had passed and I cared a great deal less than I had the first time. Still, I said "That is alright, I will let it slide." She seemed to take this as a joke and let out a little giggle.

Kai rested his elbows on his knees. "Got to say, Isabella, I'm not used to seeing you all dressed up." Frowning, I peered down at my hideous shirt before crossing my arms and resting my shoulder against one of the far walls.

"What do you mean?"

"You're wearing colour. Been a while since you wore anything that wasn't black. Thought it was your happy colour, darling?"

"Things change. People change, but you're already well aware of how much people can change, isn't that right…darling?"

He smirked but dropped his chin, defeated and guilty. I wanted to punch that smug face more than I wanted to kiss it. "Okay, Guess I deserve that." He threw up his arms and leaned back; he'd certainly made himself at home. I supposed I wasn't the only Volturi member to forget their manners. It had been so long since we had needed to use them. Jacob came in from the kitchen then, holding a sandwich. He must have been asleep for hours, maybe an entire day. The poor thing was starving. He beamed when he saw me, and opened his arms for a hug I did not give. He shrugged, seemingly careless. "I'd ask how the trip to Denali went, but looks like there's more important things to talk about."

"We didn't figure out much anyway," Rosalie said from across the room, alone. I went to stand by her side and lean against the same wall. Emmett stood guard by Kai's side. "We found out about a vampire with the ability to rewrite memories, to compel others to do as he pleases."

Jacob eyed up Kai, distrust shining through his hunger.

"And that's you?" Asking before chomping down another large bite.

"That's me. Guilty as charged." Kai said. "Even though I committed no true crime."

"Bullshit." Jacob roared with a brittle grin. "You killed her. Might be her body and brain but you took away who she was, killed the Bella we knew." I turned to look out the window, not sure how I was feeling.

"I had no choice! Isabella, you know how Aro is when –"

"Shut up!" I snapped, then spun to face him again. "Actually, no, start talking. Where're the other guards, I know you wouldn't come alone? Why are you here? To drag me back kicking and screaming?"

He shook his head. "No. I sent them away."

"Sent them away?" Esme pondered.

"I was sent by the Trio to find Isabella, to bring you home by any means necessary," His eyes found me again. All of them were looking at me. God, I hated how they stared. "But I just helped you escape, there was no way I was bringing you home. Once we landed in Seattle I lead my entourage away. I used my gift, made them all believe we were too late, that you-" He nodded to me, "- and the Cullen's were currently on a plane to the middle-east."

"What's in the middle east?" Asked Jacob.

"Nothing, wolf, I just needed to get them far away. It was the first place I thought of. Once there, they'll follow a scent they think they've found but doesn't really exist. No matter how far they go, how fast they run, they'll never catch up to it. I implemented enough false memories and thoughts, suspicions, to give us a few weeks before they start to suspect something's off."

"You can do that?" Jacob asked, his golden skin a little pallor than usual.

"I can make anyone believe anything. I can make them see, hear, taste, smell, feel, think anything I want them to."

Carlisle sighed and stood upright, crossing his arms over his chest. "It is not difficult to see why Aro values you so."

"Yes, Yes, we all know Kai's powerful and amazing and blah. I am sick and tired of being left in the dark. It's about time I get some damned answers, don't you think?"

Kai just nodded my way. "I do."

"Good. Start at the beginning. Tell us…everything."

* * *

Mordecai leaned back, resting comfortably in the arm chair like a grandfather preparing to share a story with his grandchildren, whom were in a state of great ignorance. As he spoke I took in each word with caution as this was it, this was the long-awaited truth.

"Aro first met you – well, Bella – when you came to Volterra with Alice to rescue Edward. That all happened. You won't have realized this," he said to the Cullen's, "Not even you, Edward, but from the moment he found out about your shield, he was plotting a way to make you his. He didn't know how at first but sent a small army here. This army included Alec and Jane and, among others, they managed to keep the rest of you subdued and incapacitated whilst others retrieved Bella and brought her back to Volterra. Alec and several others were to stay here, to keep you down until Aro had enough time to meet with Bella himself. He tried to be 'merciful' as he would have put it, and offered you a choice, one you denied."

"Then how did he manage to get her?" I asked.

"Believe me, Isabella, it was not without great difficulty. At the start of his little…scheme, Aro had hoped that he would be able to convince you to join us willingly, as a human, beforehand to make the transition from your old life as a mortal being to one of an immortal nature as smooth as possible. Though he offered to grant you many things in return – eternal youth, beauty, wealth, fame, glory, power – you refused him anyhow. So…he sired you anyway, believing that perhaps your new outlook on existence itself would sway your decision."

"Let me guess," Jacob intervened, "Being Bella, it didn't."

"You are correct, wolf. The shift from human to immortal did not persuade Isabella to join us – if anything his attempts resulted in the opposite, so he made his…methods of persuasion less friendly, less inviting and more…threatening." I knew Aro, although be it through true memories or false, I knew him and understood exactly the methods of which Kai spoke. "On the same day you were turned, he had devised a plan. He knew the true extent of my power and asked that I change you. To 'Rewrite' you. Someone ancient in mind and memory, skilled and dangerous yet extraordinarily beautiful at the same time. Loyal only to Aro. I told him I could, and he graced me with the task of being your mentor, yet you refused to work with me. You held strong. Until…Aro threatened Edward."

"She changed her mind when my life was in the equation?" Edward's thick brows creased together, though I was sure he felt a little smug behind the sadness.

"Correct."

"What do you mean?" Emmett asked.

"It was on the same day Bella woke from your transformation that the rest of you showed up in Volterra." Kai continued to meet the faces of us all. Unafraid.

"I don't have any memory of this, at all." Rosalie informed us.

"Because I took those memories away. Aro allowed you in, and listened silently as Edward begged him to let Bella go. He offered himself to take her place, but a shield was so much more important than a mind reader. At this time, though, Aro had none and then he told Bella if she did not work with me to lower her shield and be changed, then he would have Edward killed. Should she still refuse, he would kill another member of this coven until she accepted."

"Bella accepted right away, right?" Jacob asked and I watched as Kai nodded. Of course, she had.

"Yes. She agreed, you all tried to stop her or to fight free but Aro made me come to you, one by one, and make you believe Victoria – whom he had seen through Edward's memories – had killed Bella. Aro also made me add an extra compulsion to you, Edward. He told us that when he touched your hand, he saw that you would not live in a world without Bella. He knew that you would kill yourself if you believed she was dead, therefore he made me force the need of revenge deep into your soul. It was I whom made you this angry, violent hunter. As long as Victoria was alive, you would be too. Aro hoped her own ability to evade death would keep the two of you alive."

I had not known this. I wondered then if Edward's silence was due to his wondering whether or not he would have sought out revenge anyway before committing suicide.

"So, yeah, it was only when the matter of Edward's life came into play that you willingly surrendered yourself to him and spent your days with me, working on how to control your shield and lower it. You decided to give up all you knew, all you were to keep Edward safe, even if that meant he had to live thinking that he had lost you."

"How selfish?" Rose chortled.

"Rose!" Esme practically hissed.

"No-" I argued, lifting my hand to steady a clearly aggravated Esme, "She's right. What I – Bella – did _was_ selfish. In a way, she died. She committed suicide and killed herself, who she was, to keep you alive but she did not think about the consequences. On her part, she was gone. She did no longer exist to feel the loss of her mate, whereas Edward had to continue on believing that his singer, his mate on this earth…was dead."

"What happened next?" Carlisle ignored what I had said completely. I did not judge him. Talk of his son committing suicide or worse, living with a dead heart, was upsetting him.

Kai continued. "For a little over a month, you and I worked together to not only gain control of your shield but to teach you how to be a vampire. I was by your side when the transformation was complete, and it was I who took you on your first hunt. I watched you kill a man, and enjoy it. In the time we spent together, I saw you break down and build yourself back up, become confident and strong even as Bella Swan. Though the time came when eventually you had enough control to finally lower your shield."

"Then you did it." Edward said matter-of-factly.

"I did." Kai admitted, "He summoned us to the throne room and he made me stand before you, my protégée, and take away all that made you who you are. We were there a short while as he thought you up, as he filled me in on the character he wanted you to be."

Character? The word fitted perfectly. That's all I was, truly. A character made up by an evil, immortal overlord with a wild imagination.

"You were to think yourself over a thousand years old. I took away your fear and resentment, and replaced it with confidence – maybe a little too much – as well as strength and pride and courage. And hundreds of years' worth of memories. Of course, he couldn't have you ever believing yourself of higher importance than he, so he made himself your saviour. He had me gave you a tragic backstory – a slave girl beneath the whip of a cruel monarch – you could look back upon and remember how when you tried to take your own life, Aro had been there to save you from this hell you knew and give you a lifetime, a hundred lifetimes, worth of happiness and power. It was this lie that made it easy to sway your loyalty to him and his law. And in case this failed, he would have you fear him instead. Which explains why you remember being punished by him for acts of resilience and disobedience. Those memories, they were pretty hard to input. You have no idea how hard it was for me to be the one to make you remember those things, even if you didn't know it."

Whippings. Burnings. Months of starvation until I was but a weak, desperate and pathetic creature. So much pain. None of it real. It was all too much to process at once, even for someone with an eidetic memory. I rose from the wall, earning several worrisome looks from the others. "Don't run," Jacob said it with a serious yet soft voice.

"I'm not running," I tried not to bite at him, but each time one of them assumed I was going to either fight or fly, the thorn in my side pressed in a little deeper. I already knew I was the stranger, still untrustworthy to an extent but I was one of them now. An enemy of the Volturi. A vampire embarrassingly asking for help. "I just need a moment alone to think." The look I got in return suggested they did not believe me.

I found myself in the office again for the first time since the day of my capture. I attempted to read the spines of the books in one of the floor to ceiling cases, but to no avail. The words made no sense, my brain focusing only on the most important things, no matter how hard they may be to face. I did not know why I was letting this get to me the way it did. I had not felt these kinds of emotions in long, long time. I had always been so sure of who I was, where I was meant to be. What my purpose was in this world.

Now, it was as if nothing made sense. Nothing.

The door opened slightly with a long creak of the hinges. Kai stepped through. "Isabella." He said in a sympathetic tone. I didn't want his sympathy. To be fair, I did not know what I wanted. Being alone with my thoughts had clearly only done more damage that help.

I decided it best if I speak first, to try and voice whatever the fuck I was going through. "I know you didn't have a choice. Who was I to you but a human girl? If you had refused him, he would have punished – maybe killed – you anyway. I know you made me who I am today, I wouldn't exist without you, but that's the thing. I am the way I am because of you. I'm a monster because of you, and I can't help but cringe away from that."

"I know. I'd say I'm sorry but what difference would it make? What I will say is that I didn't just make you a monster, and you weren't just a human girl to me, Isabella. We spent almost three months together, entire days by one another's side and it was enough time for me to come to care for you. Only a little at first, I was mostly amused by your stubbornness and pouting."

I twisted, if only to make another mental memory of his smile. He wasn't looking at me, but looking through the window on the wall opposite, but not seeing anything at all, not really.

"Hours turned into days, days into weeks and weeks into months. It didn't take long for me to fall in love with you. It was different this time than any time I'd fallen before. It was effortless. Dangerously quick and real." In the blink of an eye he had crossed the space between us and now I was craning my neck to look into his face. "I wanted to get you out of Volterra. I wanted to pack a bag and together we would leave. I pictured us spending eternity together, seeing the world. _Living._ Even if we were on the run."

Mordecai's face turned dark, his expression hardened. "But others had seen the way I looked at you, suspected something. Aro did not want to risk either of us betraying him in any way, shape, or form, so he summoned us both to the throne room a week ahead of schedule and commanded we proceed with the alteration. The way he described how he wanted me to make you….it was so wrong. You were the complete opposite. He wanted you to have little emotion, apathic. Evil, even. I – I couldn't do it. I knew I would have to make you the person he wanted, but I couldn't bear to take you away from me completely. So, I risked my own life in adding memories and traits from who you used to be. Traits Aro would not know about. Little additions, small enough he would not question them. I made you feel compassion and humanity. Capable of understanding and forgiveness. I ensured you were passionate about the arts, music and literature. I made sure some of your favourite books as a human were also your favourite as an immortal. Of course, I kept your bravery – even if others would call it a stupid lack of self-preservation, and I kept your stubborn attitude as it had been the first trait of yours I had come to love."

I squeezed my eyes, not wanting to hear anymore, but I could not bring myself to tell him to stop. Instead, I asked a further question.

"You forgot one." He remained silent. "My feelings for you? Did you implement them too?" I had considered using the L word, but I was not ready for that. Not yet. Not aloud. Not that I needed to in the first place.

He spun to face me so suddenly I thought he was going to yell, instead he only grabbed my arms and soft spoke. "No. I would never! – Isabella, I would not do that to you. Any version of you. Who you were then and who you are now. What you're feeling? I didn't do that. I didn't force you to love me…" he said much softer this time. "I forced you to be my friend."

"Your friend?" I shook my head and bit my lip.

"There is no denying I wanted your love in return. I'm not saying I did not consider just making you love me, I confess I wanted to, but I thought about it and I knew it wouldn't be you. It wouldn't be real. I needed it to be real. So instead I created memories of time we spent together and gave them to you. At the time, I had been thinking of an evening in which we had still been learning to control your shield; you were upset and confessed to me you were forever trapped, and I explained to you that simply wasn't true. You would serve Aro for as long as Aro had a hold on us both, which could have been for centuries to come, but I also told you how generous Aro was when it came to time away. We talked about how on tasks from Aro you could still travel the world, see the wonders that had been and be there for the creation of wonders to come. You could visit Machu Picchu, or study in the mountains of Tibet. You could listen to a symphony from one of the world's most famous composers and life a full life."

"I remember doing all of those things." It was the truth. Those few adventures he had mentioned, I had experienced. In memory only, I knew, but I remembered climbing Machu Picchu with Kai whilst crossing through Peru, playing in the snow of the Tibetan mountains before a Monk monastery, and finally…

Seeing Tchaikovsky compose in 1873. A memory I thought back to when in times of stress, most recently on the jet home after my first run in with the Cullen's. I had thought of how beautiful the music had been, how soft Kai's eyes had been whilst watching. I remembered his face on that night so clearly in my mind as it had been the first ever time he had not been wearing a mask.

"You remember them, because I knew you would want to. Because I wanted you to experience them." Kai went on, his voice pulling me begrudgingly back to the present. "All The times we've spent together may all be in your head…but that doesn't mean they aren't real. To us. Anything you feel for me now...is all you." His hand came down and cupped my cheek. "You know, Aro had a final request before I finished summoning you. He would not have anyone call you Bella. He had me make you hate the nickname until the end of time."

For some reason this forced an involuntary breath of laughter; I leaned into the arms of the man that had killed Bella Swan.

"Thus, you were born. Isabella of the Volturi Guard. Beautiful but deadly, like a rose with poisonous thorns."

Kai let out a hefty sigh of relief and shook his head whilst looking down at his feet. The story over. The truth out in the open for us all to see, and it made nothing even a little bit easier. If anything, it opened me up to a world of questions. I did not get the chance to voice one of them as we heard movement from outside the room. We both heard his footsteps before his knuckled knock on the already ajar door. I titled my head his way. "What, Edward?" I let out a sigh of…exhaustion. I had not thought it possible, but I was mentally and emotionally drained. Him ruining this moment was not good.

"Mordecai. You took away Bella's memories."

"We've covered that, Edward, keep up." I turned back to the window and he scoffed.

"No, what I'm saying is that if Mordecai was the one to take your memories away…he can bring them back."

* * *

Asher's Note:

Hello Everyone! Chapter Seventeen is here! A long chapter than the last few, which is great! A lot happens in this chapter. Firstly, Isabella rushes back to Forks to find Kai there but not in danger. Alice's vision had been caused by him only to get Isabella to come find him. Edward and Kai meet for the first time, and of course Edward was not pleased to meet his ex-mate's new lover. Awkward. As you can see from Isabella's actions, she is still torn between how she feels about – well – everyone. She does not want the Cullen's to come to harm, but the thought of Kai being killed creates a bloodlust in her we have not seen in a while. The poor girl is going through a lot. We also find out the truth, that Aro came for Bella and threatened the Cullen's if she did not work with Kai to lower her shield. We learn she and Kai were friends when she was still Bella, and he did not force her to love him now.

Also, great news! As well as updating this story with this chapter…I am posting the first chapter of my new story, which I a prequel to this one from Kai's POV! Many of you wanted to see something from Kai's POV, and I decided it best to show his side of what happened in the past in another story entirely. It won't be as long as this one will be, but it should go on for a while! The story will be up within an hour of my posting this chapter. The story is called 'To Forget a Love Since Found." Not a great title, but it is a play on the title of this story. Kind of the opposite. Quick question? Who do you see Kai as in your head? Is he a specific celebrity or some made up face? I see him exactly as he is on the cover image of this new story! You can find it on my profile.

You do not need to read that story to continue this one. Those who would like to read it, I would love to hear your thoughts and opinions on the first chapter! Thanks, let me know what you think! :]

* * *

Responding to your reviews:

LRJ: Thank you so much. X

Traceybuie: Thank you. I found it nice to have Rosalie whom hated Bella the most to get along the best with this new version of her. Edward doesn't. He expected Isabella to want to come back to him, to be with him as much as Bella had. It is taking him time to realize they are very different people. Kai did screw Bella over, though hopefully this chapter will explain more as to why he had no choice.

TheMrsDSalvatore: As you can see, she did! Though there was no real rush needed. That was an interesting theory, though I doubt Edward would be able to live with himself if he did that. This Edward at least, especially after seeing Isabella's concern over him.

Guest #1: Thank you :]

Guest #2: Thank you so much for the long review and advice! Many good points, although there is a lot of story left to write and I have a few more large arguments in store for Isabella and Edward, many of the points you made are sure to come up then. I do not think Rosalie would want to go into too much detail. Isabella would love to know the details but going over exactly how she tortured her ex for days would only torture Rosalie emotionally, I think.

XXTMSXX: Caught that, did you? Ha. Jacob may not be single, no ;) Thank you so much, I am glad you enjoyed the friendship between Rosalie and Isabella. That's true, but Isabella isn't very friendly with Kai right now. Despite being so obviously in love with him. Thank you, I hope you have a great weekend too!

Omegaaa: Thanks! Hope you enjoy.

Guest #3: They do if they land feet first after jumping from the highest mountain in all of Alaska!

JH831: Thank you. As for Isabella's diet, that shall come up in chapters to come.

Cecilia4059: Thank you, hope you enjoyed. He may have yes, but we shall see.

Guest 4: Hmm. Maybe in the future, but who knows?

Hopestreet: Aha. That is true. But as she says, she had no need for manners until recently. Thank you so much.

Guest #5: That would be funny, she might in the future! She took it for a reason!

~Asher~


	18. Chapter 18

~ Isabella's POV ~

* * *

Closing the door behind him, Edward stepped further into the room.

"You can do it, can't you?" The disgust he had for me vanished in an instant and was replaced with a flicker of hope. "You can turn her back?" Kai's eyes darted from Edward to me then back to Edward. He looked lost for words, not that he needed them. From the look on Edward's face, he was reading every thought going through the vampire's mind; and from the way he softened his features and the corner of his mouth twitched upwards into a smile, I knew he had found the answer he had been hoping for.

Kai swallowed loudly. "I've never done it before, but – Yes. I suppose it's possible." There was no point in lying to a telepath. I found myself surprised that the thought had not occurred to me beforehand. If Kai could achieve brilliant feats such as inducing irresistible needs into someone's subconscious, take memories away and rewrite their souls entirely, then who was there to say he could not simply return memories also? Though it was as he said. He had never accomplished such a task before.

"Do it." Edward demanded.

Before either one of us could speak, the door opened and the other Cullen's joined us, with Jacob right behind them.

"What's going on?" Jacob asked. He had been the only one not to overhear the conversation. The others had though. They had heard every single word Kai and I had said to one another. I felt suddenly naked before them, and wrapped my arms around myself but kept a stern expression upon my face. I dared them with my eyes to speak of it.

Edward glanced over his shoulder briefly at the Shifter. "He can reverse what he did to her. He can bring Bella back to us. The real Bella." The real Bella? That annoyed me, that pissed me off. He had no problems rejoicing in the fact I might die and his precious human pet my return. It then hit me that it didn't matter if Kai could do it. What mattered was if I _wanted_ him to.

And I did not. There was no way in hell I was sacrificing myself so Bella Swan could return.

"You can do that?" Jacob asked, his lips also turning upwards.

"Theoretically." Kai ran his hand through his hair, turning away from them to hide the disappointment on his face. "I've never attempted to completely return someone to their previous self. I don't know who she will become, what she will –"

"Stop trying to find excuses." Edward growled. "I said do it."

"Hey! Hold up." I stepped before Kai again, wedging myself between the two and Edward took a step back. I hoped he remembered Alice's vision. I had no clue the details of the fight, but I hoped it was enough to truly scare him. "No one is doing anything. Why don't one of you bother to ask me whether or not I _want_ my memories back before you start debating if it's possible?"

Kai winced at my words, and nodded. "You're right. I'm sorry." I could tell by his tone he was embarrassed with himself and the way he had spoken of me and not to me.

"You want your memories back, Bella, you need them back." Edward was frowning, shaking his head at the same time as if the possibility of me not doing what he said was entirely unfathomable. It only irked me further. How dare he? One of these days he was going to get it through his thick, _thick,_ skull that I was no longer his property.

"That is not your decision to make!" I screamed. Silence settled into the room again; even Jacob could hear his own heartbeat.

"It's not." Alice said at last, her voice rang out through the house. I spun to her. She stood in front of the others with a sad look on her face. It did not suit her. "It's not Edward's decision, and he shouldn't be speaking to you like this." The tone of the sentence hardened, a scold to her brother. "But you can't blame him for being this way. You – Bella Swan – was his mate. His true love, and he lost her."

"Put yourself in his shoes." Carlisle continued for her. "If you lost your mate." He beckoned to Kai.

"Kai's not my mate." The words came out before I could stop myself, and I was thankful I stood before Kai and could not see the hurt I'd inflicted. Too many wounds in such a short amount of time. Would he ever heal?

Carlisle rolled his eyes but huffed a smile. "If you lost someone you cared deeply about then found out they were alive, but unable to remember you, would you not jump at the chance to have them get their memories back? To be together again?"

I had no solid argument to give.

Rosalie moved across the room to the giant desk. With a wave of her hand, she moved away the small pile of books atop it and hopped up onto the edge. "What if you both can get what you want?" She shrugged.

"Rosalie?" I questioned the meaning behind her words.

"What if Kai can bring Bella back…without taking you away. Keep your personality and memories, but let you remember being Bella too?"

"That won't work, Rose." Said Edward.

"It might." Kai challenged. "Again, I've never attempted it but…there's no harm in trying – I don't think. Only if you want to, of course." He added, reaching to caress my fingertips.

I tried to gain an understanding of what she meant. To remain as myself but remember being an insignificant human too? Was it possible for the two of us to exist at once? To share a mind as a new person altogether? But then would I still be myself? If I suddenly remembered falling in love with a man I barely knew? If I cared for a human father I had never known? In times of duress would I make decisions as I would have them, or as Bella?

Would I still be me? I was faced with a conundrum, an ultimatum.

After much deliberation, I finally gave them my answer.

"I'll try it. But I want to make something abundantly clear." I turned away from Kai and let his hand fall free. Facing Edward I met his sad golden eyes and held them, willing him to not break our connection. "No matter who I am now, or who I will become should Kai succeed? I will never come back to you. I will not be with you. You are not my mate."

* * *

As if it was some kind of cosmic joke, I found myself sat once more on the stupid cushioned armchair in the corner of the sitting room. I was beginning to think of it as the 'Naughty' seat a disobedient child may have been sent to should they misbehave. Still, I did not think I would come across as stable if I were to claw at the chair and tear it to pieces in front of them.

The Cullen's dotted themselves around the room as they usually did when they had nothing else to do but stare and listen – or in Edward's case: input his opinion when it was neither asked for nor needed. I found comfort in the fact Rose stood closer to me than the others and no longer felt the need to watch her back around me. A stupid move, to be so trusting in someone who was until recently a deadly enemy, even if that enemy truly did mean her no ill will. A stupid move indeed, but one that made me a little happier.

Kai fell before me on bended knee and took my hand in his own. A thought rushed forward and for a single moment I thought he was going to purpose marriage to me; instead Kai simply gave my hand a reassuring squeeze and begun rubbing soft and gentle circles on the back of my palm. Just like he always used to do whenever I was stressed. Only now I thought about it could I remember all the times he would trace mindless patterns on my skin, my bare back. Drawing masterpieces only he could admire.

He was doing a similar thing now. Acting as if I had – or was preparing to -go through something traumatic. Perhaps I was?

"I've got a question." Emmett said as he made his way to stand by the fireplace, to mellow in its warmth, across from Rose. "How is this even possible? Wouldn't you need to know all of Bella's memories, even from when she was little, to recreate them?"

"Good question?" Rose challenged Kai with a jerk of her chin.

"It doesn't work like that." Kai explained, shaking his own in response, "When I rewrite a human being I completely erase their memories, they dissolve into nothing at my hands. As if they never existed. Isabella however, was immortal when I changed her. The immortal mind as you all know far exceeds that of a human in every way possible. It's far more secure and structured. I couldn't completely erase Bella Swan's personality even if I wanted to. I think of it more as taking everything that made her, well, her, and shoving it to the back of her mind. Deep, _deep,_ into the subconscious – and then I built a wall to stop it from resurfacing. What I'm going to attempt to do now is take down that wall. Her memories should return in time."

He stood upright and made his way to the back of my chair, out of view. The only indication he was still in the room was his familiar smell of blood and rosemary, and his gentle fingers on my shoulders. One finger tugged on a curl of my hair. I inhaled again, deeply, and felt my diaphragm contract and my lungs fill with oxygen I had no use for. I could taste the stillness in the air, the occasional waft of warmth from Jacob. This was it. This was the moment I would change forever. Maybe only a little, perhaps significantly.

"Kai?"

"Hmm?"

"Don't lose me."

"Lose you?" He repeated the words as if they made no sense to him. "Isabella, I will _never_ lose you. Not ever. I promise." Promises. A trust in one person to another that something will happen. Simple and stupid and human. Yet to Kai he meant his promises, and he had yet to break one. I trusted the man behind me, I trusted him with my life. Which, as it just so happened, was in his hands. Both literally and figuratively.

He leaned down and placed a kiss atop my head. A kiss that forced a smile out of me – and the smile had nothing to do with knowing Edward was watching. "Are you ready?" He asked. I had to keep reminding myself that Mordecai was not killing me. That I was not going to die. I had lived a thousand years, what was eighteen more?

"I am ready."

His fingers slid down my head and he pressed two to either temple. Soft and warm to the touch. I reached into my mind and it did not take me very long to feel the mental shield I had been born with. Like an imaginary bubble around my skull, one I could have traced my imaginary fingers across and manipulate to my will. I gripped onto the sides of the armchair just as I took a firm hold on my shield, and when I heard Kai whisper the words "Now, Isabella." I pushed my shield away and felt a jolt of what I could only describe as numbness run from Kai's fingertips into the base of my mind.

The experience lasted only a couple of seconds but from the first I knew something was extremely wrong.

Though I stretched my shield, I did not felt the elasticity shift very far. A moment of confusion before I was hit with a sharp and violent pain within. It was as if Kai had dug his fingers into my skull and was crushing my brain. The pain increased impossibly fast until I tensed, crumbled in the seat, squeezed my eyes shut and screamed.

Within seconds so much happened. A dozen voices calling my name, footsteps trampled closer. The world around me shuddered and shattered before me. The armchair broke and then I was on the ground; my eyes were open but I saw nothing in the blinding pain. In the madness, I heard someone ask Kai what was wrong, and his panicked response was that he did not know. He sounded strained, as if he were experiencing a similar sensation to me.

Then it was gone. The raw, untapped pain at least. The moment I felt his fingers lift from my skin I pushed away from him and soared into the air and over the furniture, to land crouched in the corner at the far side of the room. I sobbed tearlessly to myself, suddenly not caring if I looked weak. The pain. The pain had been unlike any I had braced before. Except…the transformation, of course.

No one moved but Edward, who was by my side in an instant and saying her name. "Bella?"

"Shut up!" I screeched almost animalistically, his words like daggers in my ears. The pain lessened and when a full minute had passed it had reduced to an ache. What I would imagine a migraine to feel like, if we were capable of feeling such afflictions. A dull, continuous throb.

"Isabella?" It was Kai who spoke. Somewhere in-between the chaos he had crossed the room also. Unlike Edward, he wasn't trying to pick me up. He was just looking at me with concern. "You alright, love?"

"I'm okay." I lied. I picked myself up off the ground and brushed my hair out of my face, taking in deep breaths reflexively.

"Do you remember?" Edward blurted out, taking another step. "Do you remember being Bella?"

"No." I snarled. I sat quietly and thought about it for an entire minute, but my answer did not change. Now I no longer felt as if my head was being torn to pieces, I sorted through every memory I had from the past day, week, month, year, decade, century. I thought far enough back to my muddy human memories. I flew through them all in an instant but found not one single trace of Bella Swan.

"I don't remember anything of being Bella." I repeated, meeting all their questionable and concerned faces.

Edward turned on Kai and pointed a finger at him. "You!" He roared, "You said you could bring her back!"

Kai's worry for me hardened into rage at Edward. "I thought I could! Something went wrong, obviously. Now back off, Edward,"

Edward did not move until Alice stepped forward and urged him behind her. "What went wrong?" She asked. The Seer then hurried over to me and lifted me to my uncertain feet. She lead me to the others, then they sat me down on the sofa. "What did you feel exactly?" Carlisle asked me as he lay a hand on my shoulder.

"A whole lot of pain." I tried to keep my tone soft. "It was like my shield was stuck. I couldn't pull it down, I wasn't strong enough." I leaned back, running my fingers through my fringe and brushing it to the side. Carlisle starred off into empty space, and a second later his eyes lit up just as Edward spoke.

"Of course,"

"What?" I asked.

"I had a thought," Carlisle explained. "In your mind, you've been controlling your shield for centuries. You've mastered it to the best of your ability, correct?" I nodded once. "But you have been a vampire for only two short years. You only lowered your shield once to allow Kai to alter your memories but other than that…. you haven't touched it since."

"But…I do have control. I've lowered it a hundred times, I know how it works and how it feels. I'm the master of my shield."

"You only think you are," Kai said, "When Aro asked me to have you believe you had been with us centuries, I knew I'd have to make you think that in that time you had mastered your shield. It didn't click with me before. In reality…your shield was unaffected by what I did. You're not as strong mentally as you think you are, you don't have enough control yet to make it vanish completely. You need to practice, in time you should be able to –"

"Time?" Edward scoffed loudly, dropping his hands to his sides with a slap. "The one thing we don't have. How convenient for you, Kai."

"Edward, shut up." Rosalie retorted sharply.

"We do have time, Edward." Esme said to her son. "Kai has bought us three weeks at least before the guards he sent away realize what Kai did to them. Is that enough time to learn to lower her shield, Kai?" Esme asked him.

"Perhaps." He replied, "Isabella and I will work together, just like we did when she was human, and we'll lower her shield and get her memories back. It'll be difficult, but I think she can do it." I did not share the confidence he had in me. "Instead of smashing through the wall, we'll just take it down slowly." Kai reached forward and placed a hand at the bottom of my spine. "One brick at a time."

"Okay, but then what?" I asked. "I'll remember being Bella but that isn't really my top priority right now. Eventually, those guards will realize what you did to them and they'll send word to Aro. He'll send an army, or worse, come himself to find us. What are we going to do?"

"I don't know." Kai confessed.

"Don't worry about that now." Carlisle told me. "We will stand by you, my family and I, because we care about you, and we care about Edward. But we will cross that bridge when we come to it. Focus on finding yourself, then and only then will you be in the right mind to realize what you want to do."

I was grateful for Carlisle's words but I did not need to know Bella to know how this would end. It would end with a fight. It always ends with a fight. The only question is…who will die?

* * *

I stepped through the apartment building's front door and kicked it shut behind me. Shaking my wet hair of the rain, I trudged along the hall and made my way begrudgingly up the stairwell. This constant cover of rainfall was beginning to make me miss Volterra, and the warmth of the sun on the nape of my neck. I loved the feeling of the sun on my bare skin. Kai and I had spent many occasions nestled deep into the woods, sprawled out naked across the grass making love; glistening like two colliding stars.

Making love? Colliding Stars? These emotions were making me soft.

When I reached the third floor and rounded the corner I noticed a human standing outside of the apartment with a large cardboard box by his side. He rapped his knuckles on the door three times.

"Yes?" I asked as I approached, eyeing him up carefully. He spun with a start at not hearing my arrival, then huffed a nervous laugh.

"Whoa, sorry, ma'am. Uh, delivery for –" He checked his list. "Sonya Andrews?"

I gave him an amiable smile and nodded. "That's me," I put on a thick British accent. Sonya Andrews was yet another name I went by; a recent addition I knew the Volturi had no knowledge of. Thankfully, acting as Sonya meant no hideous wigs or outlandish make up. He tapped the box twice and I thanked him as I reached into the bag at my side and retrieved my keys to open the door.

"Where do I sign?" I asked though I could see the dotted line clearly. He pointed to it.

"Just there, please." I signed for the delivery and thanked him again. "Um – do you need any help carrying in inside? It's kind of heavy. I panicked when the elevator took its time." He laughed and I joined in.

"That's very sweet, but my husband is just parking the car. He'll be up momentarily." He nodded, wished me a good day and turned for the elevator at the end of the hall. When he passed, he passed a little too close for comfort. I could sense his attraction towards me – see it also, if you know what I mean – and he was probably hoping to stick around to see me take off my brown jacket and see through my now transparent white blouse. Though his interest in me was not the cause of my discomfort. I'd had men and women fawning over me for centuries. No, what put me on edge was how close my teeth were to his throat

In the second it took for him to pass by I was hit with a waft of aroma, the scent of his warm and temptingly appetising blood. I took in the sand coloured hairs on his jaw and neck, the bob of his Adam's apple as he swallowed. It would have been too easy to kill him, and though I considered it, the promise I had made to the Cullen's to not kill convinced me otherwise. I had to stay in their good books, if they were to help me; and this meant not hunting within at least fifty miles of Forks. Port Angeles fell under that jurisdiction.

Plus, the need to hunt was not yet painful. I could last another week.

The moment he was out of my line of sight I dropped the smile and rolled my eyes. I wrapped my arms around the box and heaved it up and through the door into the apartment with as much ease as a human would carrying a book. I set the box down against the wall and closed the door, finally in the quiet of my own place.

I had bought the apartment two days ago; the very same day Kai had come to Forks and exposed the truth to us all. And after a failed attempt at retrieving my memories, we had decided that we would spend the next month working together to try and break down the wall keeping them from me. One brick at a time, as Kai had put it. I had known from the start that I would not want to spend all my time in the Cullen home (Though Carlisle and Esme had offered) and I doubted the little old lady from the Inn would be inclined to spare me a bedroom after I threw her down a flight of stairs.

Thankfully, no one had realized that was me and I hoped to keep it that way.

So ultimately, I had decided to get my own place. An apartment here in Port Angeles. A little out of the way from the others, but less than half an hour away from Forks on foot. For our kind, anyway. It was a quaint apartment, that eerily reminded me of chambers back ho– back in Volterra. It consisted of three rooms, the giant one that made up the entrance, living space and kitchen, and two additional rooms. The bedroom and the bathroom in the back.

I imagined it to look how my chambers would look if I let someone like Alice redecorate. The bare bricks walls had long ago been painted white but the paint was so old and faded the red was beginning to thin through in places. To touch the wall was to peel away flakes of cracked paint. The furniture was not delicately carved centuries ago as I was used to, but instead manufactured by placed like Ikea, and not very ornate or elaborate either, but I had been in a rush to furnish this place and was not as bothered about little things such as a pretty coffee table.

I dropped my bag on the kitchen countertop and my soaked jacket soon followed. After I changed into warmer, dry clothes I turned to the box and tore it open, already knowing what I would find.

A new bed.

I had no need for one, but it filled up the empty bedroom and would do nicely should Jacob ever need to spend the night. The bed was the last of the furniture to be delivered, and the apartment was now complete thanks to a seemingly endless supply of cash and next day delivery. Though out of all my new furnishings I had been most eager to buy new reading material. Having money to burn meant I could buy new copies of every book I owned and other favourites I kept in the Volturi's library. Sure enough, some of them had never been read by human eyes and I would more than likely never read again. I tried to free my mind of all thoughts and got to work putting the bed together.

Ten minutes later I was nearing completion when the door opened and I spun to see Kai hurry inside. "Morning, love." He chimed with a broad, pearly white smile. He shook off the heavy leather coat he too had been wearing, and ran his hand through his wet hair. I tried to avert my gaze from his wet navy T-shirt and the outline of his firm chest.

"Morning, Kai." I said as flatly as I could without sounding annoyed. "You've been hunting?" I asked, though I could tell he had by looking at him. His skin was glowing, the bags around his eyes were no more and I was certain his eyes were ruby red behind the brown contacts he wore.

"I have. Had to run all the way through into Canada just to be on the safe side." He said, taking out the lenses. Kai too had promised not to hunt nearby. He kicked off his shoes and wiggles his toes in his socks, then sauntered over to lean against the wall by my side. "Ya know, that's an awfully big bed for one person."

Another roll of my eyes.

On our first night in this apartment, Kai had surprised me by lifting me off my feet and slamming me into the wall – thus the cracked bricks across the room. He'd held me there as he kissed my throat and made his way eagerly across my jaw. I'd stepped away, and told him that I wasn't in the mood.

Which was a lie. I was always in the mood but things had changed. Kai and I's relationship was a complicated one. I cared for him, deeply, and more so than I ever had for anyone. I would even go as far to say I was in love with him. I could not speak use the 'L' word aloud, of course, but we both knew it to be the truth. Yet, I could not just fall back into the same game he and I had played for so long. I couldn't go back to open displays of affection, no laughter or joking. I hadn't allowed him to kiss me since the day he had arrived in Forks. I couldn't name what I was feeling, I couldn't begin to understand why I found it so hard to forgive him for a crime he had no choice in committing.

Still, I had not turned him away when he had asked to live with me here. In fact, I was glad I was not entirely alone in Port Angeles. If the Volturi were somehow to discover the truth of Kai's manipulations and attack, I would need back up. And yes, I supposed the world did feel lighter with him by my side. But since he had called me out in Volterra, in front of Aro of all places, the game had changed. Now, we weren't friends who fucked every so often. We no longer 'Fucked' If we were that intimate with one another, it was something more and I wasn't ready for there to be more.

"The bigger the bed means more room for me." I countered. Kai pushed away from the wall and stormed across the apartment to the dresser by the far wall that was filled with only his clothes. He pulled open the drawer so angrily he tore the handle off and cursed. "What's your problem?" I snapped from the floor, sitting back onto my ass. "I don't want to fuck so you get all pissy and throw a tantrum?"

"I don't give a shit about the sex, Isabella!" He yelled, spinning to face me as he tore the T-shirt over his head and searched for a dry one. "I never have. Yeah, I miss being able to touch you but I'm more bothered by the fact the woman I love is shutting me out." I dropped my chin to the bed. "You know I had no choice in doing what I did. I know you know, and yet you still refuse to even look me in the eye?"

I looked back up, not as his now naked body but his eyes as he had said. "It's not that I'm shutting you out. This whole thing, It's just…"

"Just what?" He groaned, pulling on fresh boxers and a pair of grey jogging bottoms to lounge about it.

"Hard!" I yelled, feeling a swell in my throat. "This is hard, Kai. I'm scared and I'm struggling to get by each second!"

I had never told him I was scared before. This seemed to stun him. "I – I'm scared, and I need time, Kai." I was softer now on purpose. Feeling tired, tired of yelling, tired of fighting. "I just found out my entire existence is all a lie, and that my oldest and best friend, the man I –" I winced, shaking my head and smiled at how silly I was for not being able to say the word. "The one person I trust most in the world was the very person to do this to me. That kind of things fucks people up, but I think I'm taking this pretty damn well, all things considered." I got to my feet and threw a pillow harshly down on the mattress I'd slid into the bedframe. "I know you are not to blame, Aro is, but I need time to figure out who I am before I can jump back into a relationship with you."

There was a long pause of silence and we listened to the city of Port Angeles through the windows and the walls. After an eternity, he moved.

"I'm sorry." He walked towards me and pulled me into a hug I could not have escaped even if I wanted to. And I didn't. I meant what I said before, that he was my best friend as well as a lover, and if anyone was rooting for me it was him. I wrapped my arms around his neck and buried my face into his warm chest. I squeezed him back.

"Me too." I whispered. Eventually, we pulled away from one another and he was smiling at me. I smiled back, a sad smile but a smile all the same. His mouth twitched. "What?" I asked, seeing in his expression he wanted to add something further.

"So…we were in a relationship, huh?" He said stepping away to find a T-shirt.

"Shut up." He laughed again and I had to turn back to the bed to hide my own smile. "Here, help me get the bed into the bedroom." He lifted one side, I took the other and we moved the bed through the door into the other room. He helped me silently with the sheets and the duvets and pillow cases, then he made the bed for me. I wouldn't use it, but it was a kind gesture.

"So," he said when we stepped back into the sitting area.

"So, what?" I asked, closing the bedroom door behind me.

"Do you want to get started?" I frowned, "Your training," He added. He darted across the room and sat on the hard, wooden floor with his legs crossed, like a child. He tapped the ground in front of him and I sat in that spot. I crossed my legs just as he had and rested my hands on my lap. "So how is this going to go? I'm not going to go through that whole ordeal again am I?"

"No, that was because I was in your head too, trying to force my way in. This'll just be you. We'll start with expanding your shield and once you're comfortable with that, we'll focus on reigning it in. Sound good to you?"

I sighed and shrugged, "Let's do it."

So, Kai took my hands in his and lead me into controlling my mind.

* * *

Asher's Note:

Hello Readers! Chapter Eighteen has finally come. Nothing too exciting happens in this chapter, I'm afraid, but we do discover that Isabella is not yet strong enough to control her shield. It will take time for Kai to teach her how to manipulate it and eventually, lower it. We also discover that they are not going to swap Isabella for Bella. They are going to try to and keep Isabella but allow her to remember her time as a human also, much to Edward's dissatisfaction. We also skip ahead a couple of days and discover Isabella and Kai now have their own apartment in Port Angeles, and during their argument Isabella confesses to him that she is scared. Please, let me know what you think of this chapter and what are your theories for chapters to come? Also, if you haven't already and want to, please check out the first chapter of the prequel to this story. From Kai's POV and set during Bella's time as captive to Aro and preparing to become the dark Isabella we all know and love. The story is called 'To Forget a Love Since Found.' Thanks for reading! It means the world to me.

* * *

Responding to your reviews:

Goldielover: Yes, I'm glad I was finally able to explain exactly what happened. There were many theories on how she ended up in the Volturi's home. I did consider the idea of Bella willingly going to Aro and asking him to change her but that did not feel true to the Bella Stephenie created. That Bella was too madly in love with Edward to do something like that. I feel Aro's fascination with her ability was a great incentive for him to kidnap her. You are correct, Edward only sees an opportunity to get his Bella back and does not care enough about Isabella to care about killing her but, as you can see, that isn't going to happen anytime soon. Thanks for reviewing.

LRJ: Thank you! Unfortunately, real life gets in the way. I wish I could update every day, alas I cannot. Thanks for reviewing.

Mrs. Stilinski Clearwater: Do you think so? She is overly confident but I find that fun to write. Ha-ha.

Sharksaver23: Thank you so much! As you can tell, he can but it is she who is the problem!

Traceybuie: Returning all of their memories will come up soon. He is willing to return her memories, but first Isabella must master her shield.

Hopestreet: Are you? I suppose that is a good thing, being torn. As for sorting through her memories and her feelings, that too will be explored in the future.

Macey: Thank you so much, means the world! It is a sort of filler chapter, explaining what really happened to her in the past. I was excited about Edward and Kai meeting too! And, well, Jacob if you count him as a love interest but honestly, Edward kind of mourned Bella as a girl he was falling in love with and moved on. Which we will see in chapters to come! Ah, yes. Unfortunately, pressing send is a vital part of leaving a review! I would have of course, replied if I had seen it! Thank you too, I'm trying my hardest to write whenever possible.

TheMrsDSalvatore: Thank you! I love Kai too! He is such a fun, deep character. I hope to explore more of him in the prequel story! I also love Isabella. Who she has become is someone I admire. Without the murder, obviously. Can't wait to see what you think!

Guest: I agree with you. I would have liked to see a drastic change in Bella's personality in the novels. She was so fragile and defenceless on her own as a human, and when she became an immortal she still was not seen as powerful as she should have. A shame.

Kathy23344: Aha. I am guessing you don't want her to get her memories back? Aha. We will see in time!

Wolflover: Thank you so much, can't wait to see what you think of other chapters!

~Asher~


	19. Chapter 19

~ Isabella's POV ~

* * *

I was exhausted. In every possible way; and yes, that includes physically. Okay, in truth we immortals were unable to physically tire…. ever. We could start running one day and never stop, start digging through the earth with our hands until we had burrowed our way to the core, and – as Kai and I had recently demonstrated – fuck until our hearts content. An added feature of our design. Though just because technically I could still do these things, Kai's training had left me in a state of perpetual fatigue.

We sat on the wooden floorboards of our new apartment in Port Angeles, across from one enough with our fingers interlocked, until the sky darkened and lit up again with sunlight the following morning. We had spent hours working on my Shield but I felt no better off than I had before we started. Kai went through everything I would need to do to successfully master my ability, the first of which was finding it. It sounded simple enough, I scoffed at his demand. It was like asking a child to point out the sun in the sky. A large, obvious part of my world.

But it must have been a cloudy day as finding the mental walls of my shield was a far cry from simple.

It took me almost half an hour to even begin to locate the walls of my mind and hold on even though there was nothing to hold on to. It was only after I mastered that did I realized this was easy, moving it was the tricky part. The only way to describe it was being faced with a wall made of rubber, and though you could press into the wall it did not actually break.

"C'mon," Kai urged as he took my hands again, "You can do this."

"I can't." I told him, running both hands through my fringe to then tuck my long, in-the-way-hair behind my ears. I should have tied it back. "It's like grabbing onto the reigns but not being able to move the horse no matter how strong I am." It was exactly like that.

He rose a single brow.

"Ugh. Fine." I said with an exasperated sigh.

I closed my eyes once more and filled my lungs with useless but fresh air. I dug my figurative fingers into my Shield and tested the elasticity of it, pushing and pulling. I heaved with all my mind then attempted to reign it in and force it back out; like a wave – but nothing.

"Okay, relax." He said softly and I let go, feeling the dull ache slowly dissolve.

"This used to be a lot easier." I told him when I lay flat against the ground, breathing in our stale scents.

Kai was resting against his elbows, smirking at me. "You mean in the past? In your memory? Where it never actually happened?"

"Precisely." He dropped his head and laughed again. Kai had been laughing more freely since he abandoned the Volturi to find me, and though we were on the run he seemed to be having the time of his life. I could not complain however, as his laughter was contagious. "We'll leave it for today and resume again tomorrow. We've done this before, we'll do it again."

He was right, and wrong. _He_ had done this before but not with me, with _her_ "Was it the same way with her? With – with Bella?"

He paused to think about his answer. "Bella had less control then than you do now, but I went through the same process with her. Aro also gave me about a month to train her so she had about the same amount of time as you do. I told her the same thing I'm telling you now, that before you can bring your shield down you first need to learn to hold it and expand it to shield others before you can begin to reign it in."

"It's easier said than done, Kai." I rolled forward and bounced to my feet; I brushed down my outfit of the dust that had settled during the night.

"Preaching to the choir, love, I know exactly how difficult it can be. You think implanting a thousand years' worth of memories into someone is easy?"

"Hmm, I suppose not." I grumbled.

"It should be easier for you than it was for her." Kai called from the bedroom as I stretched my limbs.

"Oh yeah? How so?" I flew across the room and flicked open the latch on the window and pressed it open to let in fresh air. The room was hot and musty.

"Well your mind is several years older than hers was at the time, and you want to do this whereas Bella Swan loathed me and only complied to save Edward's life."

I could not but help imagine the two of them. Kai as he always was and a human version of I. Bella. Fragile and blotchy, with brown eyes and a beating heart. I felt somewhat defensive and angered by my own imagination, of the girl spending days with Kai and the idea of knowing he had fallen in love with her.

"Tell me about…your relationship, with Bella, I mean."

"Well," he started, "When I first met her I felt nothing but pity for her. A young human snatched away from her happy life and taken as a slave and prisoner to, well, the likes of Aro. She was nothing but another poor innocent to me until Aro tasked me with teaching her how to be one of us. To ensure she does not break our laws and eventually master her shield enough to lower it.

"She was stubborn, as you are, and her confidence around our kind humoured me. I could not believe how fearless she was. Here we are, blood drinking, super human immortals and she, a mortal human would stand up to us all. I was curious about her relationship with the Cullen's, how she got tangled up in our world and she told me. As we worked I got to know her, and she had questions about me and my past and I felt somewhat compelled myself to tell her. We went through a lot in our short time together, Bella and I, and when the time came for me to alter her, to take her away, I found myself in love with who she already was."

He was staring off into a memory, his eyes empty yet soulful at the same time, a smile twitching on the edge of his lips. I did not want to look any further.

"I think I'm going to take a shower." I told him, snatching a towel from within the vanity cupboard and heading toward the bathroom. Once inside, I stripped down and kicked away the items of clothing. I heard the ruffle of his clothing and his footsteps before he appeared behind me.

"Why are you putting off hunting?" I spun to find Kai at the threshold to the bathroom, leaning casually against the frame with his muscular arms crossed and beaming at me, his eyes running up and down my body.

I held my arms across my chest to keep the towel secure. I was more comfortable with my body than most women, as I had demonstrated a few days before at the Cullen home, but I knew that Kai _wanted_ to see, therefore I had to cover up.

"I'm not putting it off. I just wish to stay in the Cullen's good books, therefore I shall not hunt recreationally and hunt only when I require it. As of this moment the burn is not yet severe."

"Okay, but you realize that if you hunt then your mind will strengthen, you'll find it easier to control your shield."

"I said not now." My words were certain, but not malicious. "Now get out you creep." Those words were.

"Oh, now you worry about decency? It's nothing I haven't seen before, love." He winked and I fought back a smile. I went to punch him but he hopped backwards, palms up in surrender. "Alright, alright." He laughed as he left me be.

I stripped and stepped into the tub and beneath the stream, moaning aloud at how good the scolding water felt against my skin. I understood his confusion at my resistance to hunt. I shared it. In the past I would have jumped at the opportunity to kill, even if I was in no need to feed. There was always something pleasurable in watching the life leave someone's eyes… I was a sick person, this I knew and had accepted a long, long time ago. But for the first time in my history, I was in no mood to kill.

But I was in the mood to pin him against the tiled bathroom wall and have him ravish me. His wink often left many weak at the knees, myself included. I knew he was joking, I knew he was trying to accept and understand why I needed time apart from him, but for a moment – and only a moment – I considered inviting him to join me. Our relationship had started out like that, consisting of very little emotion towards one another. I used him for his body and he used me for mine; or that's how I remembered it. Sex does not play as important a role in the life of an immortal as it does to a human. Human's – well, most humans – see sex as usually one of two things: an act of passion between two lovers that care for one another deeply, or a mindless act between two individuals to relieve them from their needs, an escape to nothing but pleasure. Most immortals saw sex as the latter; mated pairs, of course, view it in the opposite light but for those of us unbound by a soulmate sex was nothing but a way to pleasurably pass the time.

I knew that if I were to welcome Kai into my arms then it would not be what we were used to. It would not be fucking. It would be making love. This was what I had to remind myself every time I urged to have him touch me – which had happened over one hundred times in the last two days. And with what he just told me about he and Bella occupying a large part of my mind, I doubt I would even be able to go through with it anymore, no matter how desperately my body craved it.

When I was done, I stepped out of the tub and wrapped a towel tightly around my torso. Flipping my hair back, I headed to the mirror and slid my hand across it, wiping away the condensation to see my reflection. I still looked stunning, but my eyes were not as vibrantly red as they had previously been. They had darkened to near black. I could go out in public and no one would question a thing.

He was right. I would need to hunt by the end of the week.

Kai took his turn to shower while I changed. After spending so long in jeans and a wrinkled shirt, it felt nice to slip into something a little softer; a cashmere woolly sweater and leggings – black, of course. My damp hair was wrapped in a towel and I settled on the sofa with a random book from the shelving unit on my lap. It had been weeks, _weeks!_ Since I had time to myself to read something I wanted to read. I had the chance before, I guess, as we could read at a speed a human bookworm would sell their soul for. I read War and Peace in an hour – but when you're being hunted by the largest clan of powerful vampires this world has ever known, reading doesn't really act as a high priority.

And it would seem I would not have that chance today either, as the moment I flipped the first page a sound from outside captured my attention.

I heard their footsteps the moment they entered the building.

In a split second, I was on my feet and at the door. Kai, presumably hearing me from the bathroom, appeared at my side in the blink of an eye, dripping wet and entirely naked. It was an effort to stare. The towel atop my head had fallen and landed on the floor behind me so I stared at the door through long, wet hair.

"Immortal." I announced, not detecting any heartbeats that were not already in the building. He nodded once, and I heard his fingers curl into fists.

"Calm down, it's us." I heard the voice sigh three floors below. Alice. I let out a sigh of relief and turned back to the lounge. Kai also relaxed and shook his hair as he made his way back to the bathroom, his firm butt just calling to me bitten.

A moment later they knocked on the door but Alice invited herself inside before I had time to move. She skipped through the entrance with a spring in her step, beaming at the apartment. "Not bad, not bad," she declared with pouted lips as she set down several bags of what appeared to be home decorations and clothing. Speaking of which, she was dressed in an oversized white coat that swallowed her up, bright blue jeans and suede heeled boots.

I had assumed Jasper was with her, but it was Edward who followed her in. I hadn't captured his specific scent of sadness and despair in the air yet. Hmm. Unlike Alice he was dressed casually, wearing grey/blue tinted jeans that were worn at the knees and a lose-fitting button-down grey shirt. The sleeves were rolled up to the elbow, over which he had folded his trench coat.

He nodded to me and forced a humble smile. "Isabella," The word was strained, as if he hated the way it tasted on his lips.

"Edward."

"T-This is a nice place." He said, spinning slowly to subtly look away from my face. A nice place? I cocked a brow at Alice but she shrugged her shoulders. Edward wasn't being rude, or violent, or demanding. He very obviously did not want to be here, but he was trying to maintain some kind of polite demeanour. He need to make up his mind on how he feels about me.

"What're you both doing here? I mean, it's not like I don't want you to visit but I don't want you to visit."

Alice laughed. "I've had an idea, a way to try and trigger some of your memories!"

"How so?" Kai asked as he emerged from the bedroom, his body dry beneath a lose-fitting, open-neck T-shirt the same dark colour as the jogging bottom's he'd pulled on. I always loved him in baggy bottoms, for the obvious bulging reasons. Water droplets still clung to the curls of his hair like miniature obsidian marbles.

"Well," In the humble way she spoke that simple syllable we all knew the next words out of her mouth would be ridiculous. "By revisiting some old, familiar places you spent a lot of your time. We'll tell stories; maybe help wiggle loose some memories."

Edward rolled his eyes and licked his lips, attempting to hide his smile. "Because telling stories is the key to breaking through a vampire's supernatural ability to take away memory. Well-done, Alice, you've figured it out."

I found myself pleasantly surprised. "Wow, Edward, was that sarcasm I just detected?" I spun on Kai but kept a finger pointed at Edward's chest. "Did – did he just make a joke?"

Kai dropped his head smiling, folding his arms over his chest. Edward let out a sigh with no real annoyance.

Alice's eyes narrowed on her brother. "Hush, you, I told you before I know it won't bring her memories back straight away but it's the only way we can help whilst she tries to lower her shield; how's that going, by the way?"

"Off to a good start." Kai told her, "We only recently stopped for the day, we'll resume again tomorrow but Isabella's already found the walls of her shield which is brilliant progress." Then they were all looking at me. Analysing me.

"Great!" Alice chimed, "So…are we going?"

"No. Get out."

Alice laughed again.

"What's funny is that you think she's joking." Kai called over his shoulder as made his way to the set of drawers and withdrew a folded pair of socks.

"Aw, come on, Isabella,"

"Alice, you don't get it? Those places aren't familiar to me." I scooped up the wet towel and folded it over the radiator to dry. It wasn't like I had to worry about damaging my hair or anything.

"It might help." Kai plonked himself down on the sofa. "I mean, it won't return your memories but maybe listening to them, learning about them, will make the recovery and transition into your old life easier for you when we finally do break down that wall."

I gave him a look that yelled _Really?_ But Kai just nodded and shrugged. With all their eyes weighing down on me, I rolled my own and gave in. "Fine, what's to lose. Other than my dignity." I mumbled heading to the bedroom to change. "Listening to stories. Stupid." I sadly stripped down from my warm slacks and changed into black high waist jeans, a burgundy blouse with a plunging neckline and a pair of black lace up high heeled boots. I slid on a jacket only to protect my shirt from the rain and finished the look off with a random beanie hat I found in one of the bags Alice had dropped off.

I glanced in the mirror as I passed it and caught my own black eyes. I didn't bother with lenses, I wouldn't need them.

"Why aren't you ready?" I asked Kai as I made my way back into the entrance. He was still in the same clothing as before.

"Actually, I thought I might not come. I…I want to pay your parents a visit." He said to Alice and Edward.

At this, all three of us scowled. "Pay them a visit?" Alice wondered.

Edward's eyes widened just as Kai replied. "The thought crossed my mind earlier that though I may not be able to fully restore Isabella's memories yet, but nothing is stopping me from restoring the rest of yours."

The thought had not crossed any of our minds, or if it had no one had been brave enough to voice it. They did not have a supernaturally built in shield protecting their mind from having their memories restored, why not have Kai return their memories? An act of kindness, of goodwill. An act that would prove his loyalty not only to me but to them.

"Yeah. I figured everyone would want to see the truth for their own than only taking my word for it. I can return your memories later, if you'd prefer or –"

"No, do it now." Edward said, then added. "If you can." I was right. Edward was trying to be politer. I did not know which version of him I preferred, the brooding obsessive man I had come to loathe or the faux friend façade he was putting on.

"I agree, I want to know…" Alice said in a softer tone than I had ever heard. Kai looked to me, almost as if waiting permission.

"What are you waiting for? Do it." I don't know why I was so eager to see it done. Perhaps I wanted and insight into what awaited me a month away, or maybe I related to them on some level. I knew what it was like to not remember, but to want to even if what you saw was terrifying.

"Okay, who first?"

Alice and Edward looked at one another but it was Alice whom stepped forward, lifting her chin. "Me."

Kai nodded, took in two lungs of fresh air and reached up to touch her temples. "You'll remember what you know now, Victoria killing Bella but it'll feel like a dream. The truth will file itself into your memories and you'll remember the army coming to Forks, being held at bay as Bella was taken, coming to Volterra to rescue her and Aro's deal. It might be…a little disorientating."

I had seen Kai alter memories in the past, seen him compel unwilling victims into following his every demand but I had never seen him restore what he had taken and it was frightening. The moment he begun Alice gasped and her hands flew up and her tiny fingers locked tightly on Kai's wrists. For a moment, I thought she was going to pull him away but instead she froze and stared off into her memory.

Edward let out a soft breath, barely a breath at all but it captured my attention and I noticed his expression, mirroring his sisters. "You're seeing this too?" I meant what Kai was showing Alice and Edward nodded slowly. It only lasted a few seconds but when Kai tentatively pulled back his fingertips, Alice leaned back against the wall and closed her eyes tightly.

"Alice?" I asked, feeling a slight hint of concern for the short, annoying girl I had come to know.

"I'm alright." She answered instantly but the lack of a smile on her painted pink lips argued otherwise. "It's just…I haven't ever felt anything like that before. It was so…discomforting. I felt dizzy and…and like I fell asleep for a second in the first time ever!" A smile spread across her lips.

"Great. But do you remember?" Kai asked and she nodded considerably.

"Yes. The attack and Alec! Finding out you were gone, coming to Volterra to find you! Seeing you as one of us! Then…Aro!" She rambled on to me as Edward stepped forward.

"Now me." He said in a forced steady voice. Kai mimicked the action. Edward tensed also, his face scrunching up for the longest time until finally Kai stepped away and Edward twisted his head away with a jerk. His teeth were showing, his fists pressing against the wall so angrily cracks begun to appear and specks of paint as small as snowflakes fell lazily to the ground.

"Edward?" Alice stepped in front of me and lay a hand on her brother's shoulder, communicating only with her shimmering golden eyes and her thoughts. Whatever memories Kai had restored they had been unpleasant ones and I don't know why I believed there would be otherwise. In both versions of the past, he had lost his mate. He had failed to save her from Victoria's wrath and lived his vengeful life believing he had not been strong enough, fast enough, powerful enough to save her, and he had failed to save her from the Volturi and Aro's wide and desirous eyes. A spoilt child spotting a toy in a store windowsill and throwing a tantrum until he got it. Only Aro's tantrum included killing countless innocent lives.

"I'm fine." He lied through his teeth, his tone sharp and defensive. "Sorry – So many thoughts and feelings, images and sounds and it's just hard to comprehend, that's all." I remembered that Edward also considered those around him. In both versions of my death, he'd seen images through not only his own eyes but the eyes of his family. He'd seen that death from a dozen different perspectives and now he could see my true death from a dozen others also.

Edward surprised us all then by turning to Kai and saying. "Mordecai, I want to apologise." I lay a hand flat against my chest and took a step back, eyes wide. "I see now you had no choice in the decision to take Bella away. It was Aro, and her."

There was half a minute of silence before Alice scoffed as loud as humanly possible. "Okay, the melancholy has settled and we've had the ten seconds of awkward silence, can we go now?"

I joined in with their laughter, pleased the sensation was becoming more familiar and the awkward moment had passed.

Kai dressed impressively quick and joined us at the bottom of the stairwell and, together, the four of us stepped out into the rain. Immediately, my hood was up and I was tucking my hair into it. I almost looked as concerned for my appearance as Alice who already had a large, black umbrella above her head.

I giggled. She looked like a child parading about with garden parasol against her shoulder.

"I'll call Carlisle, let him know you're on your way." Alice informed Kai as she pulled out her phone and hurried off to dial.

"So, I guess I'll see you soon?" It sounded horribly like a question. I didn't like this. Didn't like knowing that we were outlaws now, criminals, wanted immortals. At any moment one of us could be found. Which, you might say, is a good enough excuse for what I did next. I stepped forward onto my tip toes and pressed my lips ever so softly against his own; Kai froze in surprise for only a moment before I felt his fingers slip to cradle my neck and he embraced the kiss.

Edward's horror and disgust hit me in a wave but it only turned me on. I moved my lips and craned my neck, clinging to him like I could never let him go. So I did let him go. "See you later, hot stuff." I patted his cheek twice before turning and strolling past Edward with as much swagger as I could muster.

Alice sprung to my side and linked her arm with my own, for a fraction of a second the assassin in me screamed 'attack' and I considered breaking her arm off. "That was really mean."

"I'm sure I don't know what you mean," I kept my head high, my features plain and expressionless though inside the laughter was uncontrollable.

"You know what I mean," She scolded lightly. I peered over my shoulder to see Edward following us and Kai nowhere to be seen. It was mean, but it was a test. If Edward truly wanted to wipe the slate clean and treat me with the respect I deserve then he must be tested.

C'mon Edward…give me something. Something to prove to me this real, that you really want to start again. I winked at him.

He smiled.

* * *

Standing in front of the Swan residence, I remembered something:

How lucky I was I no longer lived in this pathetic little house. I suppose that's a bit harsh; this house like every other house in this town – save for the timeless architecture that was the Cullen's home – was small and simple. A little too small and simple if you ask me but I was used to living a life of luxury. In my mind, I had lived in castles and palaces and mansions across the globe so the idea of being reduced to living in this two-bedroom, one-bathroom house in the middle of nowhere made me cringe.

Though it was one of the finer ones I had seen. The Chief had taken good care of it; the lawn was mown and fresh flowers – as dull and nulled as they were – grew by the skeletal trees dotted around the lot; though something told me the female I detected to also be living in this place had something to do with it.

"Who lives here with Charlie?" I asked as I drew my hood and followed on. Keeping my head down was important, especially during the day when any stranger may recognize my face. A disadvantage of being a semi-famous girl in a near non-existent town, even if she was only known for being the dead daughter of the Chief.

"Sue Clearwater," Alice said over her shoulder, "She's one of the Quileute Elders, and Charlie's girlfriend."

A part of me felt lighter at knowing Charlie was not entirely alone in the world. That he had a mate. Well, a partner. Human's did not mate. "The Chevy was yours too."

"It was?" I spun to face the red Chevy, I was unsure on the model but from the look of it, it was old.

"It belonged to Jacob's father, Jacob fixed it up and Charlie bought it as a gift to you when you first moved to Forks, you loved it."

"Charlie couldn't bear to sell it, he couldn't bear to drive it either so it's sat here for two years." Edward said. I tried to imagine myself behind the wheel of the vehicle, human and happy. Ecstatic that this junk metal was mine. Bella either had low standards or an unusual taste. Edward stepped beside me, smiling at the car, the rear of it, as if it were Bella Swan herself.

"C'mon," Alice called to us and only now did I realize she had left us alone. I rushed to meet her atop the porch steps. Edward faced the street, his eyes scanning the windows of the neighbouring house.

"No one is watching us." He said. I thought about how handy his gift would be to have. Not only in battle but in general. Even without his heightened senses, he could read any mind (myself as the only exception) within a mile's radius and tell whether or not we were being watched. I turned back to Alice who withdrew a key from her coat pocket.

"You have a key?"

"Charlie and I go way back." She said by way of explanation. Once inside with the door locked, she shook off her coat and draped it over the back of the hideous green couch, making herself at home. I copied her, thankful to be back in the dry and the warmth. The house was nicer on the inside than on the out; the walls were painted teal with wooden floorboards running throughout the entire house. The place was warm, no windows had been opened except – I tucked my hair behind my ear and listened – except for one of the bedroom's upstairs. I already knew it was her bedroom. Bella's. The same bedroom I had slipped into my first night in Forks whilst looking for Victoria.

Victoria. The image of the flaming bitch burned into my mind and I realized how she had dropped from my radar completely. Not only had I given up hunting her, she'd slipped my thoughts and worries until now. The chances were that she was a thousand miles away, more. On the opposite side of the planet. She had believed me dead too, not by her hand of course but dead all the same. My sudden resurrection and intel that Aro was hunting her probably terrified the poor, cowardly thing.

"So," Alice sang, "Let's have a look around."

"I've already seen all this, Alice," I told her. I'd been here twice now already, once my first night in Forks and the second day, when Alice and the others ambushed me on that very lawn.

Alice gave me a dark look and I stepped back, holding up my palms and spinning. "Just look around!" Damn, that girl scared me more than Aro ever had. If I had learned anything about since meeting her it was that when she was set on something, it was happening whether or not you complied willingly.

Not sure where to start, I looked around the living room and took in everything and anything that could be of interest. The mantelpiece surrounding the hearth was made of white marble and photographs were lined across the shelf. Photographs of Charlie and the female, Sue Clearwater. Newer photographs, recent additions to this mantle. I could tell by the layer of dust beneath the frame. A photograph of two teenagers whom shared the physical characteristics as those whom lived on the reservation; copper skin, glossy black hair, dark eyes and tribal tattoos. The whole enchilada.

One of the teenagers I recognized as the only female Shifter in Samuel's pack, the girl with the pointed nose and permeant scowl and cropped hair. The boy at her side, her brother I assumed, was the youngest Shifter I'd seen. No older than sixteen, but handsome in an adorable puppy kind of way.

"Leah and Seth." Edward said as if he had read my mind. "Sue's children."

"Hmm," I responded with a shrug. I wondered where the father was but cared too little to bother asking. The last photograph was one of a little girl with long, straight dark hair sat upon the lap of a man dressed as Santa Claus, looking disappointingly at the man, unconvinced. I recognized the child as the same child I had seen in many of the photographs in the photo album Charlie kept on the coffee table behind me, the very photo album Edward was flicking through silently. The child was me back when I had been Bella and been a child.

I was unsure why Charlie had chosen to print and frame this photograph specifically, as it was not a very appealing one of me nor was it very amusing; but in the past I had heard of parents whom were blown away and swept of their feet by the simplest, stupidest things their children did.

'Oh, my gosh! My child just took a dump! Look at it! A dump!'

Ridiculous. And it got worse with how advanced technology was. I would not put it past parents these days to post all over social media how proud they were of their offspring for having a digestive system that works. Perhaps Charlie had chosen to frame this silly photograph for the same reason, because it was a memory that made him smile.

I was an immortal with a brain far more advanced than an ordinary human and yet it was something I could not completely understand.

I moved to the kitchen: a room the same size as the lounge, and furnished with only faded yellow cabinets and a small, two seated table by the alcove windowsill. I sniffed up and tasted the garbage from the trash can, orange juice from the half-empty glass on the counter and…fish? I pulled open the refrigerator and two of the four shelves were occupied by leftover Fish Fry.

"Your dad's favourite meal." Alice said from the archway into the kitchen, scrunching up her nose. I knew what she meant, the fish smelt horrible and to those of us that could smell, well, everything, it was even more unpleasant.

Then I thought about what she had just said, or specifically one word: Dad. Dad? It sounded strange, even spoken in thought. My _Dad?_

Obviously, I had known from the first moment I accepted that I had been Bella Swan that her father was also my father but I had not given it much thought until now, standing in his kitchen.

In my memory, my mother had died in childbirth, and I had only known my father for a short period before he sold me away to work as a slave, a handmaiden, an object of possession. I had been only an infant when he had given me away so I had little memory of him and that was before my transformation. I know now that man never existed, that the only father I ever had – if you did not count Aro (and I no longer did) – was the human chief of police in this boring little town.

A part of me suddenly wanted to speak to him, to ask questions but I knew this was an impossible hope. He believed his daughter to be dead and to discover not only was she alive but she was an entirely different person and a vampire could do him more damage than good. It would also make him a target of the Volturi, it would give Aro incentive to hunt him down and kill him anyway and this man did not deserve that fate.

"You didn't have a great sense of style," Alice informed me as we made our way up the stairs and into her bedroom. I'd seen her bedroom my first night in Forks too; a small rectangular room with walls painted the colour of sage and decorated with abstract flower art and postcards from her mother and Phil, whom I had been told was her step-father, in Phoenix where the sun always shone. If she was from Phoenix, why was she so pale?

Fairly lights hung from corner to corner of her room, above the headboard of the wooden bed and wound around the legs and arch of her white, wooden cheval mirror. I traced my finger along the cracked wood of the desk against the wall and drew a line in the dust. I suddenly wondered if Charlie would see it and went to wipe off the corner but Edward whom stood by the window, peering through the lace veil behind the curtains, shook his head and my own snapped up to meet his eyes.

"Don't worry about it." He said, "Charlie very rarely comes in here." He did not need to tell me this. It was obvious from the stale air and the layer of dead dust coating everything in the room. Including the small bookshelf hanging on the wall. I flew across the room in a blur and snatched away the first book. It would appear Bella was into the classics – well, the classics of modern day – along the lines of Pride and Prejudice, Sense and sensibility, Mansfield Park, Wuthering Heights and, of course, Romeo and Juliet.

I lifted the book and turned it over in my hand; it was obviously her most read book. The pages were yellow and creased, the cover cracked and the picture disfigured. It even smelled old.

"What is that?" Edward asked and I turned and threw him the book casually. He caught it and then smiled down at the book, another memory I assumed. Edward sat on the old, rocking-chair in the corner and held the book in his hand, turning it over carefully just as I had. He opened it to a page divided by a bookmark, then he smiled but with sadness.

"What?" I asked, feeling left out of their little joke.

"She bookmarked the quote I read aloud during one of our classes. I never realized she liked it so much."

Curiosity got the better of me. "What quote?"

He paused, if only for dramatic effect before reciting the words. " _'O, here will I set up my everlasting rest, and shake the yoke of inauspicious stars from this world-wearied flesh. Eyes, look your last. Arms, take your last embrace. And lips, O you the doors of breath, seal with a righteous kiss. A dateless bargain to engrossing death…'_ "

I knew the quote from the first word. Hell, I'd known Shakespeare! But I let Edward finish because the quote and repeating it to me meant something to him and though, yes, I was a cold-hearted bitch…I still did not want to come between him and this memory, this bittersweet memory.

I hadn't noticed when Alice had slipped out of the room, but I noticed when she returned. She popped her head through the door, looking at me with hope shining in her eyes. "Anything?"

I scoffed and took the book from Edward's steady hands, then shook my head and slid it back onto the shelf. "Nothing." It was not for lack of trying, or wanting to, remember. I did. In a way. When Kia first told me he was unable to return my memories because my shield refused to allow him in, I had wondered if perhaps it was not because I was not strong enough to do it but maybe, subconsciously, I didn't want him to do it. It was only in this bedroom I realized I did want to remember, I did not want to be Bella Swan again, but I wanted to remember the human girl whom had come and torn apart everyone's lives without even meaning to. The human whom meant so much.

We had all heard the engine as the car turned onto the street but no one had guessed it was Charlie, not until Edward's head snapped up.

"Alice!" He said softly but loud enough for his sister to hear. I knew just from the look he gave me that it was time to leave. In an instant, we were downstairs and Alice was already sliding on her jacket.

"Stupid." She cursed, it took me a moment to realize she was talking about herself. "I wasn't looking, I didn't think he'd be home early." The car turned onto the drive way, we stepped aside out of view through the window. My jacket was also back on my back, the hood shadowing my shallow face and darkening my already black eyes.

"Why is he?" I asked. Edward paused for only a second, then let out a sad sigh. "Every so often he has days like this, where he can't bear to function. He's called in sick."

The cruiser door opened, there was the rustle of a jacket and the crunch of thick work boots on the gravel of the driveway. Then footsteps towards the house. "Come on," Edward ushered me towards the back door. Alice had already vanished. I nodded and went to follow him out but just as he vanished into the cover of the trees and I reached the threshold, I heard the front door open and a heartbeat thudded loudly in my ears.

I looked back towards the entry way, thinking one word as Charlie came in and hung up his gun holster. _Dad..._

"Isabella, come on!" Edward's voice snapped from somewhere hidden in the forest. I turned back to the archway leading to the hall. Through that thin wall stood the man that made me, stood the man that had loved me as a human infant and taken me in three years ago, when I asked. Through that wall stood my father.

"Bella!" Edward snapped again, this time he stood on the lawn, eyes wide with panic and leaning forward to prepare to lunge. I don't know if he thought I'd lost control, or wanted to kill Charlie or worse, approach him with the truth. I wanted neither. I don't know why I initially thought to stop, but for some reason it felt wrong to flee without seeing him. I knew it was a stupid thought, a risk I should not be taking, especially when I was so starved of fresh blood, but I could not bring myself to turn away.

I knew the moment the thought came to me that Edward would be furious, they all would be, but I did it anyway.

I closed the back door, locked it with the hatch then vanished into the shadows of the house just as Charlie walked through. I was in the foyer, I'd slipped by him entirely unnoticed and then I was on the ceiling, using my boots and palms against the wall to keep me suspending in the air above the stairs as he walked beneath me.

He looked so worn. His skin a silky pale and he had not shaved since the first time I had seen him, his moustache growing into a full beard. He ran shaky hands over his face, his blotchy cheeks, and then across his sweat-lined forehead. He got himself a glass of water from the faucet, then made his way back to the lounge. He dropped with a heavy slump and kicked off his boots. He took a few deep breaths before pulling out his cell and lifting it to his ear.

"Hello?" Answered a woman's voice. An older woman. Probably his girlfriend from the reservation, the mother of the Shifters in the photograph – Sue – I reminded myself. Another bad habit of mine, referring to people as what I remembered them as: The Golden eyes, the bronze haired boy, the Shifter, the Alpha, the Seer, etcetera.

"Yeah, it's me," I had not heard Charlie speak before. He had a deep voice, not manly per se but…fatherly.

"Hey, what's wrong? Why aren't you at work?" Sue asked.

"I'm, uh, I'm not doing so well."

There was a pause. "What's wrong? Are you ill?"

Charlie rolled his eyes (A habit I must have inherited from him) then put his head in his free hand. "No, um…No, I Just can't, today, Sue." Both Sue and I knew what he meant right away. There was a pause, the only sound in the world was his heartbeat, Edward and Alice outdoors demanding I joined them, and then…a drop. A teardrop as it slid over his stubbly chin then plummeted towards the carpet space between his knees.

Charlie broke down into full on sobbing. At this, Edward and Alice also went silent. The crying lasted a full minute and was uncontrollable, unstoppable. He just dropped his chin to his chest and cried and cried and cried.

"I'll be there soon," Sue told him softly, not needing to say anything else. "I love you, Charlie," She told him. He sniffled up, then wiped the tears from his bloodshot eyes. He nodded, as if she could see him but he was alone. Or so he thought. I doubted he was the kind of man to cry when he thought anyone else could hear him. Little did he know three vampires, one of which was his very daughter, listened in on him as he poured his heart and soul out to the only person he had left.

"Love you too," He hung up and dropped the cell to the cushion at his side.

Then Charlie Swan looked up and our eyes met in the reflection of the wall mirror.

"Bella!" He roared.

I moved.

It took me one second and a half to fly from the ceiling, to Bella's bedroom then throw myself from her open window.

* * *

"You're an idiot, Isabella!" Alice screeched at me for the seventeenth time in three minutes.

"How many times do I have to say I'm sorry!" I snarled in response as I sludged through the wet forest at a human pace just outside of the swan residence. My boots were ruined, my hair was damp and plastered to my cheeks and I was starting to get pissed off. I had never seen Alice so mad at anyone.

"At least a couple hundred more!" She yelled over her shoulder, storming throughout the tall trees. We didn't want to risk going back to the road, so we'd decided to walk the long way around and pick up the car from the opposite way. She was right, though, even I had to admit that what I had done was idiotic. He had seen me. Charlie had seen me.

When I met up with the others whom were just as panicked as I, Edward informed us both that Charlie had only thought he'd seen me for a moment but then he shook it off as his grief and tiredness playing tricks on his mind. We were lucky. _I_ was lucky. I don't know what overcame me, I couldn't explain the uncontrollable urge just to stay with him, to see him not through a pane of glass but in person. To hear him speak.

"I'm the idiot!" Alice raged on, throwing the end of her scarf over her shoulder. A part of me had concluded she was also partly angry with me for being responsible for the mud on her boots. "For thinking this was a good idea, for having hope!" She dropped her arms and they slapped against her sides.

"That was kind of stupid." Edward said, speaking for the first time since we'd left Charlie's. He dropped back to walk by me, not in a possessive way but just to talk to me.

"You don't think I know that?" I growled unintentionally.

"You do. I just thought it a good idea to remind you, in case Alice hadn't said it enough." He flashed a smile and it tugged at the corners of my own. I went to speak but noticed Alice had stopped altogether a couple dozen yards ahead of us. It took half a second for us both to hear what she'd caught sound of: footsteps.

"Who is it?" I asked as we hurried to join her. It was a wolf, that much was clear. No one needed answer my question as a moment later a wolf came to meet us from beyond the thicket. The wolf that greeted us was Jacob. I could identify him easily now by the unique, reddish colour of his fur. He was alone, which was unusual.

"What's wrong?" Alice asked quickly to a panting Jacob. I hadn't detected the urgency in the air but Alice was right, Jacob was in a rush. We all looked to Edward for a translation.

"It's the council." I frowned at them both, "The council of Elders of the Quileute tribe. They've heard of what you're doing, trying to control your shield to get your memories back but...they don't feel safe with you in Forks."

I huffed loudly. "Tough shit. I'm not leaving anytime soon."

"No, that's not just it." Edward said, his eyes only on Jacob's. "They want to know if you will agree to a meeting on the reservation, to speak with them in person and have for them decide for themselves if you are to be trusted."

"A meeting?" I could not help but show my disinterest in the idea, but Jacob judged my shoulder with his muzzle and nodded.

"It's kind of mandatory," Edward explained, "If you don't agree to come then they'll give the order to kill. The treaty will be broken when we defend you and we'll be at war with the Pack."

I could picture it perfectly. A clan of vampires and a Pack of werewolves charging at one another across a grassy plain. Snarling and snapping, tearing one another to pieces just as our enemy species had done for generations. It was almost too perfect to not want to see it through and the killer in me craved for bloodshed and battle…. but having the majority of my allies' dead at my side would not do well for me if the time came for me to stand against Aro and the Volturi.

So, it was decided. "I'll go." I said.

"Wait," Edward said as if he'd suddenly changed his mind, his hand yanked me back by my shoulder and I shoved him off.

"Get off me, Edward." He looked honestly apologetic, but his words were not in my favour.

"It's too dangerous to go there, surrounded by them and alone. Jacob's thoughts are true but the Elders could see you as too high a threat, they could be trying to lure you away from us and away from protection just to kill you."

"Well if that's the case then I'd be dead and the truce would be intact and all your family will have to worry about is what to do with Kai.". I brushed my hair down one side of my shoulder and crossed the space to stand by the giant red wolf. "I'll come by the house later to tell you what happens, if I survive." I was only half joking.

Alice, whom at this moment in time looked as if she did not care what happened to me either way, just nodded and told me remember my manners. I shrugged and told her maybe. Edward did not look pleased.

"Be safe." He said finally.

I set off walking in the opposite direction further into the forest with Jacob at my side. "I will," I said, "Oh, and Edward?" He lifted his chin, waiting. "I don't need protecting."

* * *

Asher's Note:

Hello Readers! Chapter Nineteen is here! Sorry it took me a while to update but if you couldn't tell, this is one long chapter! Well, it felt like it took forever to write. I thought about splitting it into two short chapters but it flowed together nicely that I decided to keep it in. I apologise if it takes you a while to read but I love long chapters on Fanfiction! In this chapter, we see what Isabella can achieve in a short amount of time and how hard it is to do what she needs to do. We also take a visit to Charlie's house with Alice and Edward to try and trigger some old memories, but as you can tell that did not go down to well. Writing a broken Charlie is awful. It seems a lot of you dislike how angry Edward is and I'm glad I finally get to write the chapters where he begins to lighten up. A few times in this chapter he smiles and attempts to joke, which is something I am glad to get into.

Also, the second chapter of the prequel story To Forget a Love Since Found.' Was also recently uploaded and in that we get to see Isabella's awakening, the moment the Cullen's come to rescue her and when Bella makes the decision to work with Kai. I hope to see some of you readers and reviewers enjoying that story as much as this one! Thank you all!

* * *

Responding to your reviews:

Goldielover: Thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed and I am hoping she will too, we will have to see what happens with she, Edward and Kai.

Hopestreet: It is a shame you hate both love interests in this story, but I understand where you come from and I can say no decision will made me until after she has discovered whom she really is.

Traceybuie: That does seem like the best outcome for Isabella. As I said earlier, this is the chapter where Edward tries to be a better person and accept that Isabella is a different person. Her own person. I hope it was written well. I wonder if you'd read the prequel, perhaps that would shift your view on Kai and what he did. Thanks for reviewing!

HolicXoXo: Thank you so much, hope you enjoyed!

Macey: Thank you so much! I'm glad I'm keeping you on your toes! Sorry it took me a while longer to update but I hope you enjoyed. I do celebrate Christmas and I had a wonderful Christmas and New Year, I hope your holidays were wonderful too! Thank you!

Kathy23344: Yay COOKIES! Ha-ha. Thank you, I'm glad you think so!

TheMrsDSalvatore: Thank you for such a long, in depth review. I LOVE those types of reviews. I agree with you. Everyone really seems to want the old Bella back and we cannot blame them, no matter our own thoughts on Bella. Rosalie is the only one who does not care either way but she is leaning towards Isabella over Bella, ha-ha. I also love how descriptive you are! Red-haired fire crotch!' Love it. Aha. As for Bella snapping at Edward, I can't fully say without spoilers! I will say that at some point in the future Isabella and Edward will clash again in a huge way! Thanks, hope you had a great Holiday!

Guest #1: Thanks for reviewing! I both agree and disagree with you. I don't think I'm overreacting with how I write Edward. He is a lot angrier and sadder and violent than we have seen him in the past, but this is a different Edward. This is an Edward whom has spent the last two years of his existence with only one thing on his mind: revenge. To avenge the loss of his mate. Stephenie wrote her vampires to have unchanging bonding factors and an unusual psychology. This means that they do not fall out of love, nor are they forgiving once they have been wronged. This is most prominently featured when there is the loss of a mate as they cannot move past it until the party responsible has been eradicated. It just so happens Edward's responsible party is gifted at evading death. I think hunting her for two years, non-stop with only vengeance and his impending suicide on the mind would damage him, and to find his mate alive after all but unable to remember their love would only anger him further. Like a cosmic Joke. I hope I have explained this well enough. But as you can see, Edward is beginning to calm down now and hopefully you will like how I write him in the future. Thanks for reviewing.

Guest #2: What an interesting theory and very plausible. I would be one pissed off vampire, aha. He sure would!

Guest 3#: What a love idea and a lovely song, thank you for showing it to me. I'll keep it in mind when writing that scene.

Guest 4# Thank you so much! I did and hope you did too!

Kesulakristel: Hello to you in Estonia from the UK! Thrilled you are reading! Don't apologise for any mistakes in your writing as taking the effort to learn another language is a great achievement. As for Edward's POV. I had planned for that but after a while it seems confusing to write in three different POV's. In the future, we may switch to another but for now we will stay with Bella. I hope you enjoyed!

Red Sadie: Ah well this story might not be for you. But who knows where Bella will end up. If not, then I hope you find a story more suited to your likes.

Guest #5: What I love is how politely you asked.

~Asher~


	20. Chapter 20

~ Isabella's POV ~

* * *

Running alongside a werewolf felt a great deal nicer than being chased by one. It was interesting to see this side of Jacob as I was used to him appearing as an ordinary human – his scent being the only indicator of his true nature – and the only moments I'd spent time with him in wolf form was my first night in Forks when the pack attempted to hunt me down and then again when we returned from Denali to find he and his pack members unwilfully asleep at our feet; but now in the light of day, as grey and clouded as the day was, I had a chance to admire the creature fully.

They were powerful beasts indeed. I could see his enormous muscles rolling beneath his damp, shaggy fur, his paws beat against the ground and pushed off from the earth with enough force to cause the trees to tremble. Not to mention those canines, large and terrifyingly sharp, and strong too. Strong enough to tear my kind apart. An almost equal opponent. He was fast too. I hadn't quite realized just how fast Jacob Black could go and I was impressed to say the least. Together we flew through the forest faster than bullets, a mass of blurred black and red, and as silent as the night.

I knew immediately when we crossed the treaty line as Jacob slowed and lifted his gigantic head and let out a long, deep howl as we ran. I slowed until we were close and glanced sideways at him, listening. We were met with a chorus of echoing howls in return, bouncing off the trees and the rocks. A confirmation from his pack mates that they knew we were on our way.

"If you're leading me into a trap, I'm going to skin you alive and make myself a nice rug." He rolled his baseball-sized eyes and nudged me forward. We kept going. It was several minutes before I realized our run had become something different: a race.

Jacob was beginning to pant and growl, a question lingering in his eyes.

"Oh, you're on, mutt."

I had been holding back only because I was the one following him, but now the race was on and I would not lose to a werewolf. I poured every ounce of strength I had into my legs and unlike he, felt only stronger with each sure step. Immortals were more enhanced than Shifters in so many ways, there was no question the superior species; and I used this fact to my advantage. Jacob would dart around tree trunks and tackle steep mountain slopes whereas I could use my small body to duck beneath branches and scale mountain walls with ease.

I saw the cliffs edge and heard the rushing waters of the waterfall before he did but chose not to mention it as a thought occurred to me. They were strong, they were fast but they were not capable of leaping quite as high. He skidded to risky halt at the crumbling edge of the ravine, inches away from plummeting into the freezing waters below, whereas I sped up and kicked away, I felt the force and the wind work together to raise me high above the treeline until I was soaring over a sea of emerald green and burnt orange. I heard him charging down the mountain, growling whimsically and panting, struggling to keep up. The sight made me laugh as I made my descent.

The moment I hit the ground his large from smashed into me and the force sent us both crashing through the forest, trees snapped and rodents bolted for their tiny lives; I flashed back to the night his pack attacked me and for a tenth of a second I thought how easy it would be to dig my fingers into his flesh, to crush his bones or snap his neck – but Jacob made a sound similar to what I would imagine a dog's laugh to sound like and it was that ridiculous it snapped me out of my bloodlust and forced my lips into a smile which lead to uncontrollable laughter as we sprawled to a stop.

"Get off me!" I shrieked, using my knees to propel the brute away. He rolled onto his feet and sprung upwards, his long and somewhat disgusting tongue hanging out of the side of his mouth like an actual dog. I stumbled to my feet, brushing down my jacket of dirt and water; it was a good thing I'd thought to wear the jacket. I looked up and realized Jacob was trotting passed me and the rapport between us settled when I realized we were here.

We'd rolled straight out of the treeline and into open space, a clearing larger than a football pitch with a little creek twisting around it and the few trees standing out here and there. Across the clearing was a small building; a single floor made up of wooden panels painted ruby red, contrasting against the grey of the world. A dirt path lead to a driveway and that driveway lead presumably back into town. To the right of the red building was another even smaller ramshackle building a strong wind could take down.

I went to take another step but Jacob leapt in front of me, nudging me backwards with his giant muzzle. I frowned and considered his eyes for explanation until he turned completely and took off towards the smaller building. I remained in the same spot, curious but obeying his command to stay.

I huffed. The dog was telling _me_ to stay? I don't think so.

I flew forward but before I could reach the garage the heavy wooden door heaved open and Jacob returned as a human, wearing a tank top that was too small for him and dirt stained torn denim shorts. He shook his head and ran a large hand through his hair, brushing it to one side. It was getting longer, I could see the difference in length – no matter how insignificant – every day.

"Had to change," He called by way of explanation. "Couldn't let you see me naked, could I?"

"Couldn't you? Self-conscious about your body are you, pup?"

He scoffed and leaned back, "Please, I've got nothing to worry about, but you know you want a piece of this." He winked a dark eye and drew circles over his body. I punched him in the arm and he laughed but I caught him rolling his shoulder, mouthing his pain as I turned back to the red building.

I did not realize we were standing in front of his house until he said the words, "Home sweet home,"

"Wait – this is your house?"

He beamed a wide smile, flashing his pearly white teeth. It looked more like a giant shed! An abandoned one at that.

"Your entire house is smaller than my closet." It was almost too sad to laugh at. Almost. I still laughed. I stopped abruptly when I realized the comment could have come across as cruel, and that's because it was but Jacob seemed unfazed by it. He shrugged and said.

"When you spend your days killing vampires, coming close to death, you don't take things like this for granted." It was the most mature thing he had ever said and I thought about it for a second. I supposed I'd lived me life on the opposite side of the scale. He lived his life in happiness because he could lose his life in battle at any moment but I lived in happiness out of foolish confidence for my skills and lack of fear of death. For so long I had believed myself indispensable, eternal and strong. The idea of being destroyed was laughable.

But now not only had I accepted I was in fact killable but was also a wanted woman. Another reason to behave myself in this meeting, the more allies' I had the better. I listened then and realized something. "Where are they? I don't hear any heartbeats?" Other than his own and that of the rodents in the nearby trees. Jacob started walking so I followed him.

"They're over at Sue's, discussing what to do with you." He said it in a way to let me know he thought the statement was as stupid as I did.

"What to do with me." I repeated as we approached the house. "It's cute they think they have any say over my actions."

"Yeah, well I know they don't but please," he paused at the door and spun to face me, "Try to be reasonable, and don't kill anyone."

I kissed two finger and crossed my heart, "I'll try."

We stepped through the front door into a small, square room I took to be the foyer. The inside of the house was cramped, with furniture piled on top of furniture. A coat stand holding only two coats and beneath it a large wooden crate full to the rim with all sorts of muddy shoes. The walls were once brown but had faded with age and the edge of the wallpaper was beginning to peal itself free. This place made Bella's house seem far more appealing that I had previously thought.

"Ah, shit." Jacob looked down at his large, bare feet and the wet mud covering them. The carpet was already the colour of mud, meaning it would make the slightest difference. "I'm gonna need to take a shower before they arrive, you alright to wait?" Immediately, I was hit with the image of Jacob Black, naked and exposed beneath a burning stream of water and I felt the ache of a different type of hunger. Before the second was up, I shook my head and shrugged.

"Do what you want." I told him, moving around him and inviting myself into his home.

The foyer opened into the entire rest of the house; the lounge, kitchen and dining room made up one long room. The furniture was old and worn in, the leather on the couch scratched and fading, the cushions smelt of Jacob and another male, the scent was similar – his father? – and the armchair in the corner smelt of a female but one who had not sat in this chair for a long, long time. Jacob grabbed an old dish cloth to quickly clean his feet of the mud before he crossed to one of the three doors to the left. He passed through the end door and I was hit with a waft of Jacob. His bedroom then and, from the smell of bleach and soap the second door lead to the bathroom and that left the third to be his father's.

He returned a moment later with a towel in his hand then looked to me as if remembering the guest in his home. "Um, I'll just be a minute. Make yourself at home,"

"You people in this town are so hospitable." I joked.

He just smiled, "As sarcastic as ever." He turned and made his way into the bathroom, leaving me alone. A moment later I heard him strip and the water begin to run. I don't know how I felt about that comment. Was it aimed at me? Was he accusing me of always speaking with sarcasm or was he referring to his dead best friend, Bella? I decided to drop it, as having Bella on the mind would only put me in a foul mood before meeting the council members.

I shook off my jacket, thankful our scrap hadn't damaged or dampened my burgundy blouse. I dragged the beanie from my head, straightened out my hair then dropped the beanie onto the table that divided the kitchen from the living room and decided to snoop. My boots tapped on the sectioned off tiled floor in the corner of the room as I stepped towards the kitchen. I sniffed up and could smell what his father had for the dinner the previous night which, unfortunately for my nose, was fish. What was it with the people in this town and fish?

Much like Bella Swan's bedroom, the counters were covered in a fine layer of dust. I could taste it on my tongue, filling up my lungs and polluting the air. I looked at the photographs on the refrigerator and on the mantle by the fireplace. My eyes widened at the sight of pre-transformation Jacob with black hair hanging past his shoulders and halfway down his back. It made the corners of my mouth twitch upwards. I had to admit, preteen Jacob was adorable. He was joined in other photos by three different females, one I took to be his mother whom looked like him and the others I guessed to be sisters? They all looked like Jacob and they looked happy, but the lack of their scents or a place to sleep in this little house indicated they were no longer present.

I wondered where they were, but told myself it was unpolite to ask questions and, as Alice lately reminded me, manners were important.

I made my way to his bedroom and though I was contradicting my own vow to use manners, I wanted to know what Jacob's bedroom looked like and a little peak could do no harm; I eased open the door and peered inside. I do not know why the size of his bedroom shocked me but it did. His room was rectangular and dark with a small camp bed by the window to the right. His bed smelt of him, of dirt and the forest and warmth. Clothes – well, shorts and tank tops – were piled up in the corner and the wardrobe – which limited the space even further – had a broken door. I felt sorry for him then scolded myself for doing so.

There was no need to feel sorry, Jacob loved this place. It was his home just like the dark and lonely halls of Volterra had been mine and no matter what I thought of Volterra now, it had been home to me and I ached for that comfort. I heard Jacob humming to himself and was reminded he would return momentarily but before I left I spotted something silver on the windowsill.

I leaned in close and picked the item up. It was…a bracelet. Though it was not the bracelet that intrigued me as this tacky little silver was worth less than nothing to me, but the charm that had been attached to it. A half-finished carving of a red wolf. Jacob. I was sure I had never seen the bracelet before and I doubted Bella had if it were here in Jacob's bedroom and unfinished but a part of me knew it was meant for her. It was something he had intended to give her for whatever occasion and he never had the chance.

The shower turned off. Before the last drop fell I had returned the bracelet, closed his bedroom door and made my way to peer through the window in the kitchen when he returned. I doubted he'd meant I could snoop through his belongings in his bedroom when he invited me to make myself at home.

He emerged from the bathroom with the old, tattered towel wrapped securely around his waist. In the second it took him to close the bathroom door, I took in every inch of his body. He may have only been sixteen when he phased but his body now was that of a grown man: his coppery skin glistened golden and looked almost oily with the sheen of water. The abs, pectoral and other muscles in his stomach and chest seemed to be so hard and defined, carved into him as if he were the one made of stone. He used a second towel to dry his hairless chest and when he used the same towel to recklessly dry his hair, the bulge beneath the towel bounced from side to side.

He was right before: he had nothing to worry about and maybe I did want a piece of that.

"You know, I've never fucked a werewolf before…"

He chuckled and his cheeks burned with colour as he strode to the bedroom. "Really? Well I'm sorry to say you won't start today."

I let out a loud and obviously mocking 'Aww' before leaning back against the wall and folding my arms. From here I could see into his bedroom. He closed the door and I tutted. "It'd just be some fun!" I teased, pacing.

"As tempting as that offer is, I think I'll pass!" I did not like this, being rejected was not something I was used to. I did the rejecting. I shrugged to myself. There were plenty of people in this town who would want a piece of this. Then my mind's eye greeted me with the naked image of Kai and I felt his phantom fingers touching me in ways no others had before. And I was reminded with the fact that even if Jacob had wanted to have some fun, I probably would be the one to call it off.

Damn you, morals.

"So," Jacob called through the door, "What were you all doing at Charlie's? That's where you were, right?"

Hearing my father's name brought his face to the front of mind and suddenly I was no longer horny. I was embarrassed and sad. The way he looked when he had caught me in the reflection of the mirror, so full of amazement and horror and joy and fear all in one.

"Yes," I answered, "We were there because of Alice. She has this deranged theory that revisiting places that meant something to Bella will help me to retrieve my memories."

"And?"

I frowned, "And what?"

The door opened and he returned fully clothed, dressed – for once – in full jeans and a tawny, sandstone coloured shirt with long sleeves rolled up to the elbow. He now wore socks and a pair of old, unlaced boots. A style I had not seen on him yet and I much preferred it over the denim shorts, though I would grow to miss him shirtless. "And…did it work? Get any memories back?"

I shook my chin. "Of course not, the idea itself is ridiculous. I only went along to keep Alice at peace." Jacob nodded like he understood completely what I meant. He dropped down onto the chocolate coloured sofa facing the small, box-shaped television in the corner. A space by the couch had previously been occupied by an arm chair – I could see the little tears and indentations in the carpet where the soles had been – but now was empty for an unknown reason. Jacob leaned across, straining as his fingertips caught the dangling cord of a lamp switch and turned it on, filling the room with a warming golden glow.

He starred up at me standing there and frowned. "Sit down, Isabella, they'll be here soon."

I did as he suggested and sat across from him. "He saw me." I said, my thoughts drifting back to my father. "Charlie." I answered before he could ask. His eyes widened and I heard his heartbeat increase. "Don't worry yourself, he came home early and caught my reflection in a mirror. He passed it off as grief."

It took a long second for my words to process with him but finally Jacob let out a heavy breath he'd caught and closed his eyes. After a while he spoke. "He took it hard…when you died. Harder than anyone, even Edward." He explained. "No one knew what happened to you, not really I mean but the Cullen's came to us at the treaty line. I remember how destroyed Edward was and I knew something'd happened to you before they said a word." The memory was a painful one to hold, I could tell. "They told us Victoria had got you somehow, messed you up beyond saving. We didn't know how, didn't believe it at first – there was no way she'd slipped by our treaty without one of us catching her scent but eventually we had to accept it. I was in denial the longest and wanted to see the body but they told me it was so ravaged there wasn't much left to bury."

He went on. "Carlisle works in the hospital so he signed a couple of fake documents and certificates and whatever. They knew Charlie would wanna see the body so they faked her death and made it look like she'd been in some kind of car accident whilst taking one of the Cullen's cars for a drive to Port Angeles. Made it seem you were all burnt up, unrecognizable. I still didn't accept it until a month after they had your funeral. I even attacked Edward thinking he was lying, they'd turned you and didn't want us to know so the treaty would be intact but they never left. They kept going on for a little while, angry and just as heartbroken as we were. I knew they wouldn't be fooled, they'd know by your blood and stuff but – guess they were wrong after all."

"Mordecai is very talented at what he does. He made the Cullen's truly believe I was dead. He knew my scent and had seen Bella's life through the others memories. He made them believe they'd found a body that was mine, tied my scent to it so they wouldn't question it." I told him.

"He's terrifying." Kai added, chuckling maybe forcingly to attempt to lighten the sombre mood.

"He is," I agreed after a while.

Suddenly Jacob gasped and sprung to his feet. "I've got an idea," He said and he made his way around to the back door. "C'mon." I did not particularly feel like going out into the wind and the dirt but I followed him anyway out of boredom. I found him hurrying over to the second building, the place he'd phased back to a human. I did not want to get wet so I waited until he'd opened the door and beckoned me inside, it was then I flew from the house to the building and did not let a single raindrop hit me.

It was when I entered I realized it was a garage and it was spacious…for a garage. Same size as the house, I would have guessed. A large single room with a wooden step ladder leading to a smaller, second floor. It was barely a floor at all, made up of a long row of wooden planks built into the rafters for more storage space. Like the house, the garage was also full of old junk that probably meant something to Jacob or his father. Crates of scrap metal and spare parts, boxes of rusty tools and working gloves. The garage was the home of the car in the middle.

"A Volkswagen Rabbit?" I grinned, dragging my fingertips across the dented bonnet. He hadn't driven the car in a while, he probably rarely needed to anymore. I only purchased the Impala as I was unsure whether or not I would be staying in Forks and needed a place to keep my belongings.

"Yeah, you know a lot about cars?" He asked as he rounded the vehicle and slapped both hands on the hood, grinning and gently patting as if it were a prizes possession – which I realized it probably was. Then it hit me. No. No, I didn't know anything about cars. Especially ugly, boring ones such as this. Yet somehow, I'd known the name of it the moment I saw it. Come to think of it…the car itself seemed familiar. More familiar then the Chevy I apparently had owned and adored.

"No," I answered the second he asked the question. He didn't push it, thankfully.

I tried to remain calm, collected. So, I remembered something. This – this was wonderful news. Kai, Alice and the others would be pleased but for some strange reason I did not feel like celebrating. Was I unhappy because this revelation meant I was closer to becoming Bella and the idea of becoming her and losing myself terrified me? Or was it because this meant Alice's theory was working truth.

It was a bittersweet feeling; one I did not feel the need to share to others anytime soon.

"You wanted to show me your car?" I asked him, confused on why he thought it would be entertaining to me. "I'm sorry to say this but I have been around a long time and seen a great deal of ugly cars, most which were more beautiful than this."

"I'm showing you this because we worked on it together." Worked on it together? He could see the question in my eyes. "A little over two years ago, when Edward left you and the Cullen's left Forks, you kind of got depressed. You weren't eating, sleeping – and when you did sleep you woke up screaming every night." Why was this not news to me. Poor little Bella breaks down and simply cannot go on living without her beloved Edward. Pathetic. "But you and I started spending time together, we'd sit in here and you'd do anything to spend time with me, even if that meant helping me restore old pieces of junk like this."

"Why?"

"Because you were alone, and I was your best friend. When you were with me you felt better, felt something at least." He laughed as if it were a joke but I do not believe he found it amusing. "You built that too," He pointed to a place behind me and I turned and saw something covered by an oil-stained sheet. I tore away the sheet to reveal a motorcycle. I knew enough about motorcycles to know it was a Harley (I owned one a couple decades back.)

"I built this?"

"Yeah, well, you and I nursed them back to life." I dropped to my knees, taking in the red and black leather, the old metal. I could not picture myself – or Bella Swan, even – as the handyman type. "We'd spend hours in here talking', just talking' and when we'd get bored of hearing ourselves speak, we'd turn on the radio and listen to music. When we got hungry we'd order Pizza, when we got cold we'd go inside and watch a movie by the fire. It was great, the best days of my life, until Sam and his genes came along and kicked in."

I found it hard to believe but lately I had believed in a lot of unbelievable stories that turned out to be true. So, I would not question it. At first I thought I was imagining the engine or maybe Jacob has turned the ignition of the Rabbit behind me but it was a second later I realized the sound was coming from beyond the wooden walls of this place and further down the road. I stood upright just as he caught the sound.

His smile faltered and he pursed his lips. "They're here." I walked to his side and we stepped out of the garage. The wolves emerged from the forest, tall and brooding and dripping with rainwater. One car turned the corner of the road and drove quietly to the house. I could hear three heartbeats, steady but I could sense their nerves. I had a feeling we would not be taking the meeting indoors so we stepped outdoors and moved to the front of the house as the rain was beginning to lighten up to a drizzle.

The wolves stalked forward to flank the car, to circle the council elders of their tribe. I knew if I made a move that was in the slightest threatening, they would not hesitate to tear me apart. The car came to a slow stop in front of us and the three council elders prepared to meet me. I could already tell that his father – as well as Sue and the other – were not Shape – Shifters themselves. There was a hint of wolf in their blood to indicate their heritage, but it was dormant and nulled. A part of the pack at heart but unable to phase at all. I did suppose having them all together like this gave me an advantage as now I could count exactly how many wolves belonged to this pack. Twelve all together. Nothing the Cullen's and I couldn't handle if it came down to it.

"You okay, Isabella?" Jacob asked, nudging me with his elbow. The picture of their torn flesh and blooded fur evaporated from my mind and I nodded back to him, embarrassed with myself for having such thoughts. These were my allies now. I had to treat and trust them as such, even if they clearly did not trust me. Jacob moved forward away from me and pulled what appeared to be a wheelchair out of the trunk. He unfolded it and then helped a man into the seat. I could not see his face, nor the features of the others until they passed through the circle of werewolves and approached.

The first elder was the one I knew the least about, most importantly his name. He was white-haired, brittle and ancient with narrow, judging eyes. The female was Sue Clearwater and Charlie's girlfriend, I realized. She was just as pretty in real life as she was in the photographs I had seen on Charlie's mantle. Her face was thin and her smile warm but her eyes were as black as the hair that ran down to her shoulders. The last council member, the one Jacob was pushing along, had to be his father. I could not see much of Jacob in his father. The older man shared his copper skin, dark eyes and glossy black hair, but there was no resemblance beyond that. Age had not been kind to this man; dozens of wrinkles creased his face, his hands were covered completely in age spots, and not to mention the fact he was in a wheelchair and presumably paralysed from the waist down.

They stopped a distance away from me. Not too close but close enough to hear me and get a good look.

"This is Bella?" Asked the nameless one in a thin, tenor voice.

"I prefer Isabella." I corrected before I had a chance to decide if it would sway their thoughts on me.

"Isabella," Jacob said, "These are our council elders: Sue Clearwater, Quil Ateara the third but we call him Old Quil because his grandson's Quil too. And this is Billy Black, my dad." He said but was watching his father as if he were worried to hear what he had to say. They were all clearly taken away by me, Sue more openly than the others. She looked as if she wanted to cry, flee and embrace me at the same time. I knew soon she would visit my father and would have to act as if nothing was the matter at all, and I knew that must be a difficult role to play.

"Dad, Sue, Old Quil…this is Isabella." Jacob introduced me and I forced on a humble a smile as I could. His father – Billy – was studying my face as if he didn't recognize it. Or it was painful to do so. I realized they were waiting for me to make the next move, so I stepped forward – earning me a growl or two – and spoke loudly and firmly.

"I would like to thank you, Elders of the Quileute Tribe, for inviting me and granting me access to walk on your lands, and would like to apologise for the trespassing before as I was unaware of your tribe – your kind, in fact – and the treaty you have with the Cullen's."

They were all silent. I wondered for a moment if I had said something wrong but then I replayed the apology in my head and no, it was a perfectly polite apology. They were just staring out of rudeness. A question came to mind and I decided to voice it. "But why did you invite me, I wonder?"

Sue and Old Quil looked to Billy as the Chief of their tribe to reply. He cleared his throat before replying in a deep, used voice. "You're welcome, and you're forgiven for your trespasses. As for why'd we invite you? Other than the safety of our people, I wanted to see for myself if you were really her and…." He dragged his eyes from my fashionable boots to my eyes. Not in an aroused way but in a curious one. "You are Bella…"

I decided not to snap that he'd called me the wrong name. Instead, I said "Perhaps once but the Bella you knew is long dead."

The corner of his fine lips tugged upwards and he huffed, as if what I said was merely an idea. A theory in need of evidence and proof. He licked his dry lips and shifted his weight before he spoke again. "My son has told me what happened to you, why you're here in Forks."

"Yes. I had my memories rewritten and I'm trying to…find pieces of my old self in this town." It was an easier way of explaining what we were doing. I did not wish to go into further detail and explain my Shield and how it worked and for a moment I wondered if I could shield the wolves would they too be protected from psychic invasions?

"I see. And do you intend on staying in Forks?"

"I am." I answered immediately. I am. Not I do. There was no question that I was staying in Forks, "And for as long as it pleases me." I added, fingers interlocked behind my back tightened. I had to remain calm – or at least act it. I already knew where this was going.

"You understand why that'll be a problem for us. Your kind kill humans, innocents, and we protect them."

"I will not resist my nature. I have put off hunting until it becomes absolutely necessary out of respect for the Cullen clan but I have two – maybe three? – short days left before I lose myself and the need to hunt overwhelms me."

"Well, I warn you now that if any human comes to harm by your hand I'll give the order for the pack to end you." He threatened me almost casually. I decided not to mention that Kai and I had already promised the Cullen's we would not hunt anywhere near Forks because I wanted to see where the Chief of this little tribe was taking this threat.

"Is that so?" I replied a second later not bothering to hide the amusement in my voice despite the tension in the air.

"That's right, then I'll send them to the Cullen's to finish them off too."

"Dad!" Jacob exclaimed.

Oh, this was getting better and better. I tried to hide my smile and seem somewhat threatened but it proved difficult. "You would break the treaty condemn the Cullen's to death because a visitor of theirs kills in your town?"

"I would. They invited you into their home and have taken responsibility for you and your boy." It took me a second to realize he meant Kai. Kai was my boy? "In my books that means you're one of them while you're hear and it only takes one of you to break the treaty."

I imagined the battle in my head again and this time held no guilt over the image of their dead bodies. In fact, it entertained me. Though as I pictured it in my mind, I could see more dead werewolves than immortals which was the reason for my next reply. "You're bluffing." This seemed to grant me angered responses from the wolves but a humoured one from Billy. As for Jacob, he'd put his head in his hand. "You wouldn't give that order." I said, "Giving that order would mean battle between us all and a battle would surely result in the death of many of your 'Protectors.' Including, perhaps, your son? I see what kind of man you are, what kind of father you are, and I do not think you would risk your son's life to spite me."

Billy's smile had vanished and his lips pulled back into a fine line. I'd got him, I'd scared and angered him and this was perfect. "You're right, I wouldn't." He said, "So what's stopping me from giving the order just to have them kill you now? Then there'd be no need for a deal and we could all go about our business."

"An interesting idea though I'm afraid it would result in death all the same, in fact, in more deaths. If your pack were to attack me now I would surely die, but the Cullen's would hear and they would come seeking vengeance. Maybe not all of them but Edward would not lose me again. He'd probably only kill you and the wolves but my 'boy' Kai? He's ruthless. Merciless when he wants to be. His wrath would fall upon not only the reservation but everyone in this entire town, this entire state, if he lost me. He'd kill everyone you ever met, and everyone they had ever met, just to prove just how wrong you were to give the killing order. He'd make you regret that decision for as long as you lived. And you would live…he would make sure your death would last a long, _long…._ time."

Honestly, I was a little terrified of myself. Thoroughly proud and impressed at the same time. The words had done exactly what I had intended and frightened…everyone, beyond belief. I could almost see the gory fantasy playing in Billy Black's deep set eyes. His hands were trembling.

After a long and glorious silence, he finally spoke. "It appears we've reached an impasse."

"I agree."

He didn't speak, no one did. They just shook and imagined the horror Kai and his ability could cause. I could sense the sadness radiating from Jacob in waves – this was not how he had hoped this meeting to go and I felt a touch of guilt for what I had done. Not to his father, but to him. Deciding I'd had my fun, I lifted my head and spoke with a lighter voice. "It does not have to be that way. No one wants it to end that way. I have a proposition for you, Mr. Black.

He gulped. "I'm listening."

"Peace. Between us all. There need be no conflict or bloodshed between your Pack and I and Kai or the Cullen's. We work together if need be for the duration of our stay and in return Kai and I will not hunt within the vicinity of Forks and the surrounding area."

Sue leaned down and whispered into his ear. "It's a fair deal, Billy."

"The only one we have to keep peace," Old Quil added.

"I accept." He said and I smiled, "But!"

I stopped smiling.

"You're gonna have to kill anyway and I'm not alright with that. If you wanna stay you gotta feed from animals, like the Cullen's."

"Those were not the terms of the deal." I snarled, my voice bouncing of trees and rolling across the hills. The Pack tensed, their paws clawing at the dirt. I could not do as he asked. "I am trying to learn to lower the shield keeping me from remembering Bella. We only have a few weeks left and switching my diet to animal blood will only make it that much harder to accomplish."

"I don't care."

I lost all respect for the man as a chief and as a father. I had offered him a deal, a chance at peace and life for his son and those he loved and he tested me – he dared to test me? – and risk it all? The ancient fool. I half considered scrapping the entire deal and leaving Forks and any chance of finding Bella Swan behind, and killing a few innocents on my way out but Jacob stepped forward and grabbed my arm. Not in a threatening way, but in a way to indicate he knew exactly how furious and heated I now was. His light touch was him asking me not to hurt anyone. A beg.

"Blood bags!" Sue blurted the words out as if they couldn't form quick enough, "Blood bags. You say you need human blood to stay strong but Billy – we – don't feel comfortable knowing you're going to kill and still live in our town. So why not allow the girl to drink from blood bags?" She was not asking me, she was asking him. "Doctor Cullen could swipe some from the hospital, no one'd notice? That way she stays strong and no one gets hurt!" She sounded out of breath, as if she was trying to get the idea out there before one of us decided to wipe the deal off the table and lunge.

"Fine," Billy said. Fine? I did not agree to that. I had never fed from blood bags before and did not particularly wish to start now. I enjoyed the thrill of the hunt, but I supposed putting that out there would only make them see me in an even darker light than before.

"Isabella?" Jacob was waiting my answer, and I could tell in the way he said my name he too thought it was a fair deal to please us all. It wouldn't…but as I had to painfully remind myself…I needed allies. I needed the peace between the Pack and the Cullen's and the treaty to remain intact if I was ever going to be where I wanted to be.

Finally, I unclenched my claws and blinked slowly. "Fine."

Billy surprised me by holding out his hand. It took me a moment but I took it and we shook once. I could feel the warmth of his blood through his calloused skin and it made me want nothing more than to kill him.

"We have a deal." He did not sound pleased about it. I couldn't say I would leave the reservation entirely pleased either. Jacob tugged on my elbow, leading me away from the house and the pack and his harsh father. "Isabella!" Billy Black called and I spun, for a moment expecting an attack but he and the wolves remained where they were. "I want to ask you to stay off the reservation. The people in the rest of Forks might've forgotten your kind but folk in these parts still remember the Cold Ones."

The name hung in the air between us alongside the request. I granted it with the bowing of my chin and continued towards the road with Jacob at my side. The wolves stood guard and did not let down their defence until we were a good fifty feet away, then they turned and proceeded to phase and escort their council elders towards the house.

"So, that went well." I sighed.

Jacob snorted at the remark and shrugged. "It went just fine, not as awful as I'd feared, anyway."

"I'm sorry to have to have done that to your father, frighten him that way. I could see we were getting nowhere and I made a choice."

Jacob's eyes widened and he nodded to himself. After a moment, he turned to me, "I know why you did it, he wasn't going to let it drop until you said those things and damn, were you scary." He laughed but the fear caught in his throat.

"I've played a monster a long time." I answered though wondered if 'played' was the correct word. Perhaps 'been' fitted my history better.

His next sentence was cut short by the sound of an approaching heartbeat and matching footsteps of someone in human form. We turned and the female shifter – the Shifter I had seen before at the Cullen's – was marching towards us. Her eyes flicked from Jacob to me. If looks could kill.

"Leah," Jacob said, biting his lip and tucking his thumbs into his jeans. The angry girl stopped in front of us. "Isabella, this is Leah Clearwater, Sue's daughter. Her son, Seth, is over there." I peered over her shoulder to where the youngest shifter, the cute boy with the messy black hair and childish grin, was waving frantically at me as if I were an old friend. Maybe I was, but he gave me the idea he was just a joyful, waving kind of person anyway. "Leah, you know Isabella."

She didn't. Few people knew Isabella, but I did not correct him. Instead I held out my hand to her. "Leah, a pleasure." I lied. She stared at my hand as if it were an alien weapon and stepped further away.

"Alrighty then," I said, dropping it to my side with a slap.

She turned on Jacob, "Where are you going?" The answer to her question was not a request but a demand.

"What's it to you?" I folded my arms. She stared at me unblinkingly, narrowing her dark eyes. She did not want to talk with me staring at her; Jacob gave me a look. "Could you give us a moment alone?"

"Sure, you want me to run a few miles or?" I was joking, but I walked away. I didn't leave the field but stood as far away from them as I could go without taking him out of my line of sight and for an unknown reason, I was not inclined to do that. I listened to the two of them bicker like children; Jacob was explaining to her how he planned to escort me to the treaty then return but she did not like how much time he was spending with me and alone to make things that much worse. He tried to persuade her I would not risk my alliance with the Cullen's – and now the pack – by killing him which I supposed was true.

They were quiet then for a long while, so I risked a glance and saw something I did not expect to see. Jacob reached out and caressed her arm, taking her fingers into his own until she yanked them away – her eyes on me.

"Oh!" The sound couldn't help but escape my lips. That would explain a lot…

Why Jacob hadn't been trying to woo me when he realized I was alive, why he turned my body down when I offered it to him in the house, why he was being such a gentleman: he had a woman. Leah was his mate. No wonder she didn't like me. He tugged on both of Leah's wrists, his face indifferent and saddened by the words she was saying. As if I had called her name, she looked over his shoulder and her eyes met mine a second time. I turned away to give them a modicum of privacy though we all knew I would hear every word she said.

"I'm going for a run," She growled finally, pulling herself free.

"Leah!" Jacob called for her but she ignored him, I heard the shredding of her skin as she shed her human form and the heavy drumming of her paws against the earth and she fled into the forest. I rocked on the balls of my feet, whistling and admiring the plant life as casually as I could perform until Jacob forced his way over.

"Don't act like you didn't hear that." He snapped, slamming his hand against a tree with enough force to break through the wood and bark. He stormed off through the forest and this time, I was the one on his tail.

"It's not like I can turn of my ability to hear, and don't get pissy at me, mutt, they don't make doggy cones big enough." He sighed and grabbed clumps of his hair, then let go and brushed it away from his face.

"I'm sorry, she gets a little out of hand sometimes." He said jumping up onto a moss-covered log and almost slipping.

"Hey, Jacob?" I called after him.

"Can you call me Jake?"

I paused but then replied. "You prefer Jake to Jacob?"

"Not really, but Bella always called me it and it just sounds strange hearing you say 'Jacob' Know what I mean." I did, more than he knew.

"Jake." I said. The casualness of the name created an air of awkwardness but it made him smile. "Where're we going? This isn't the way we came."

"I know, I just had another thought and wanted to show you something, another memory."

"Do we have the time?"

"We're immortal. All we have is time."

I couldn't argue there, so I dropped the debate and followed him absent-mindedly towards town.

* * *

It wasn't long before the trees became farther apart and the sound of civilization hit. We left the trees and I recognized the street immediately. I'd stumbled upon it when I'd sneaked into Forks through the ocean and emerged onto the beach. La Push. At some point whilst in the forest the clouds had lightened up and now the grey skies had warmed and sunset cast an ember glow over horizon. I realized just how bright it was when my fingertips – hanging out of the ends of my sleeves – list up like pure light. I quickly leapt back into the cover of the trees before the rays could catch my face.

I watched with slight envy as the sun swallowed Jake whole and a smile spread from one corner of his face to the other as he basked in the heat, his damp hair slowly drying, his tan skin looked slick and sheen like caramel. I missed heat. Ironic, to say it was the only force on earth capable of destroying me, but it was true. In Volterra we wore cloaks to hide our true forms from the humans of the city but when we were in the mountains and the forests, hunting or simply going for a run…the warmth on our bare skin felt indescribable.

Jake seemed to notice the want in my eyes. "Just put your hood up and stick your hands in your pockets," He told me. I doubted it would work but the day was dying. I took a risk and stepped out into the light; the inside of my hood lit up subtly, not enough to draw attention thankfully, but enough to make Jake giggle.

"The big bad Isabella…. all sparkly." He joked and then ducked away from my swipe. "C'mon," He lead me away from the trees and down the road, crossing over the street we ducked under a metal railing into a parking lot. People in the parking lot starred as we crossed, their eyes only on me. I did not need to ask how they knew what I was but Jake answered anyway. "Like my dad said, the people around here remember."

We dropped onto the beach. My boots were not only damp and muddy but now wet sad clumped beneath the heels. Great. Another reason for Alice to yell at me. Look at me. A month ago, I feared no one but my Master and now I feared the wrath of a four-foot fashionista.

"What are you showing me?" I asked as we hurried along the beach. The wind smelt of salt and wolf and blood. I felt my entire body tense at the scent of it in the air – I had not been lying before. A few days' tops before I would need to hunt. I would have to decide also if I were to stick to the promise I had made Billy. To drink from blood bags if not animals.

The idea made me want to gag, but I kept my face expressionless.

"I'm showing you where you first found out about," he spun and paused for dramatic effect, throwing up his arms and shaking them. "The Cold Ones!"

As we walked across the beach the sand mixed into multihued stones that cracked together loudly beneath my feet. I noticed ahead of Jake a driftwood seawall and this was where he appeared to be going. He leapt up onto a driftwood tree that had its roots sticking out like attenuated spider. He patted the hollow wood and I perched myself lightly on the edge of a twisting root.

"Here's where I let slip the Cullen's were forbidden to come here. I didn't mean to say it but when I did, you wouldn't let it drop."

"Kai said I share Bella's stubbornness." I shoved my hands deep into the pockets of my jacket, careful not to show any skin to the sun. He laughed loudly, biting his lip and nodding. I was annoyed to see he'd already figured that out. "So, what did you tell me?"

"I told you about the legend of the Cold One's, and how my grandfather had come across them hunting on our lands and signed a treaty with them, _the_ treaty, and the terms were the cold one's were not allowed to enter our lands and we believed the Cullen's to be the descendants of the Cold Ones – if not the very same." He winked. Neither he nor Bella had known the truth back then, and look at where he was now. A werewolf himself and a powerful one at that, and Bella was not only a Cold One but one whom had her memories wiped and redesigned. We'd both come a long way in three short years.

The phone in his pocket buzzed and he pulled it out and unlocked it. Jake rolled his eyes, tapped the screen quickly before sliding the phone back into his pocket.

"Leah?" I guessed. He gave me a look that confirmed it. "What's her problem?" I demanded.

He jerked his chin back the way we came, towards the forest as if he could still see her despite being a mile away. "She'll warm up to you eventually."

"I noticed the look she gave me the other day at the Cullen's, and just now she could not look in my general direction without shaking. Did I tread on her tail or something?" A low blow but Jake chuckled at it and took no offense.

"Leah doesn't hate you. She hates Bella."

"Why does that come as no surprise. Everyone in this town either loved or hated that human."

"She didn't like the way you treated me. She saw how much I loved you and thought you were purposely playing on my heartstrings. She loved me back, I know she did, but Leah couldn't see it."

I had known that Jake had feelings for Bella Swan; Rosalie explained in further detail on our long journey to Denali at the beginning of the week. I hadn't thought much of it then other than a young boy having a crush on his best friend, but from the way Leah looked at Jake and I and from the expression on Jake's face in the garage as he reminisced about fixing up old motorcycles with her that his feelings went far beyond that of lust or a crush.

I wondered if Bella had truly loved him in return? She had loved Edward, that much was obvious to anyone but I could not know if she loved Jake. "So. Leah." I said, changing the subject to the first thing I thought of. "Do you think she will warm up to me?" I couldn't care less but it was clear she meant something to Jake and it would please him to have us getting along.

"She will, promise. She's had a rough couple of years, we all have, but her more than most of us but when I was going through my rough patch she was there for me, even if it was just to pick me up so she could push me back down herself."

"How did it begin? This thing between you and her?"

"It was a few months after I'd accepted your death. I was as depressed as you were when Edward dumped you. I spent most of my time in the forest, refusing to phase and running across the country just to pass the time and distract myself from my own thoughts. Eventually, Leah found me somewhere in Canada and convinced me to phase back for a little while. Staying a wolf, it isn't healthy. There've been times other Shifters in the past have forgotten how to be human again." That did not surprise me in the slightest. It was a horrifying thought, pushing away your humanity until you no longer had it, but it did not surprise me. "I was a mess. My hair was down to my shoulders again and I hadn't shaved or showered or eaten a proper meal. She bought me dinner, let me sleep in the hotel room she'd booked and I cleaned myself up. We got talking and she seemed to understand better than the others, it was easier talking to her then than it had ever been before."

"Why?"

"Because she went through something similar, with Sam." He squinted down at me, the sun bright in his eyes.

"Sam?"

"Before Sam Shifted he and Leah were a thing, they were madly in love. The kind of love you hope to have when you finally settle down, the kind of love you know will last…. but it didn't. Sam's nature kicked in and he Shifted and after that he was opened up to everything being a werewolf brought with it, including Imprinting." He looked at me as if waiting for me to ask what imprinting was but I already knew. It was when certain animals developed attachments to others, to their family members or mates. The possibility of the werewolves being capable of it had not crossed my mind.

"Sam Imprinted on someone else?" How hilariously tragic.

"Yeah, on Leah's cousin, Emily." He explained, "Sam tried to resist his urges but when you imprint…it isn't something you can just turn off. It stays with you, it completes you like you weren't complete before. He didn't want to hurt Leah but his feelings for Emily were pure and unstoppable."

"Did you Imprint on…on me?"

"No," he looked sad about that. "No, but the love I had for you came close. But I had lost you to Edward again and then you died, and my best friend and the girl I loved was gone. Dead. It was worse for Leah because her love had left her for someone else. It's what makes her so bitter, being around him and seeing him happy with someone else every day. But she pulled me out of my depression, and we talked and became friends and one thing lead to another and…. I don't know, I feel about her the way I felt about you. I don't think I could live my life without her now."

"That's sweet." I replied out of an unknown obligation to add something to his story. It was sweet, true, but it was the kind of love I had never imagined myself wanting then suddenly hoping to have more than anything the moment Kai abandoned his life to join me.

* * *

Jake had shown me the spot where he first told Bella about the cold ones and now we really were wasting time just walking idly across the sand but I didn't mind. It felt kind of nice to just walk with nowhere to go. I glanced sideways up at him and his smile had faltered.

"Are you sure it was love, you and Bella had? Or did she just love your washboard abs, golden skin, cheeky grin and you just want her fine as hell features? To me? It feels like the latter." I joked to lift his spirits, He sniggered and bumped my shoulder with his own. I found myself a little surprised by my own affection for the werewolf before me. All I had known of these creatures – or their distant cousins, the children of the Moon – was savageness and monstrosity. Not compassion or friendship.

"Aro told me of your kind once - well, creatures like you and your kind. He told me of how Caius, one of the other rulers of my kind, had once almost lost his life to a child of the moon. He told me how he came across it upon his travels and how, back in the day, he had been a rather arrogant and reckless immortal, and he decided to take the beast on. How he had underestimated the beast."

"He killed it though?" Jacob Black guessed.

"Correct. It took a while but eventually he snapped the neck of the monster and hung it on the wall of his chambers until it was nothing but an old, dust-covered skull. Since that night, he'd dedicated most of his time and power in ridding the world of their kind. Believe it or not, it frightened me also. I too had believed myself indestructible. A force to be reckoned with. I was – I still am yet that story opened my eyes to the true dangers to our kind. My kind."

I did not tell Jake but I had crawled onto Aro's lap that day and looked up at him like a child terrified of monsters under the bed, " _So there really are creatures out there capable of destroying us. Who wish to?"_ I'd asked him that day, so long ago. Aro had sighed a deep sigh and had moved a strand of hair from my fringe.

" _Of course, Isabella. Perhaps one day you will come face to face with such a creature. But do not fear. When the time comes for you to stand face to face with one of them, you will slaughter the beast and you will do it beautifully…_ " Though I felt different now. In the woods my first night in Forks, I'd wondered what it would be like to kill one. An experience I had yet to have. Though in that moment, standing alone by the beach with one, I felt no urge to kill him. I felt no push, nothing that made me want to kill the werewolf standing in front of me, admiring the last light of the sun. I never in my entire existence – false as it was – imagined that I would call a werewolf a friend.

* * *

Asher's Note:

Hello Readers! Chapter Twenty is here! Another very long one for everyone to hopefully enjoy! I had a lot of fun writing this chapter because we got meet Billy and the other Council members and see more of the reservation than we have before. In this chapter, Isabella and Jacob go to his house where he shows her around and she tries it on with him to get turned down. Later he shows her the garage and then they meet with the Elders. They make a deal but Billy wants to test Isabella, prompting her to want to kill him but out of respect for Jacob and what she needs to do, she agrees to the terms. In the end, Jacob shows her where she first discovered 'The Cold Ones' and she gets to explore some places that meant something to her in her past life. I really hope you enjoyed and let me know what you think!

P.S. I love the new cover image! Thought it was perfect.

* * *

Responding to your reviews:

Goldielover: Thank you! I agree, it is a sudden change from the Edward we know but he is trying to make a difference. We will see if he can keep it up. As you can tell, we had a strange and risky meeting with the Elders but it ended on good terms, thankfully!

LRJ: Thanks! Good theory, we shall see!

Hopestreet: Thank you! If you can't tell, I worry sometimes if the chapters are too long? They seem to be getting longer too and I don't know what readers prefer? You are right, that is how it seems to be going.

Traceybuie: Thanks! I agree, Aro is the worst and the Elder – well, Billy – really did not think before testing Isabella. I hope you enjoyed!

~Asher~


	21. Chapter 21

~ Isabella's POV ~

* * *

I lowered my hood as I was no longer in need of it. The sun had set beyond the horizon, the sky now a blended blur of bruised purple and dishwater grey. With the absence of warm daylight shining down on us, the cold wind returned and brought with it another wave of temptation coming from Jacob. "We'd ought to get back," I told him. Holding my breath, I dropped from the driftwood to the stone that cracked together beneath my boots. "Mordecai will be waiting for my return to continue my training."

Jacob shrugged carelessly and hopped to my side to accompany me to the road. "Do you think you'll be able to do it?" He wondered aloud, "Lower your –" He beckoned to my head with the flick of his wrist.

"My shield?" He nodded, but his furrowed brows showed he was not entirely certain what my ability was or how it worked. I thought about his question for a step, unsure on whether answering truthfully or lying would be the best way to approach it. In the end, I settled with: "Kai remains hopeful."

He huffed as if I had made a joke. "But you don't." I suppose he did know me well enough to tell when I was avoiding the question, or knew my mannerisms at least. I kept my expression hard and my eyes empty of betraying emotion. I could lie to the others but I could not deny to myself that I was questioning the possibility of retrieving my memories and keeping my current ones; to doubt was impractical as my worry would not sway the direction of the outcome of this mission, this I knew, but emotion was a cruel hindrance I could not escape.

If truth be told, it would not damage my existence in any meaningful way if I were incapable of remembering Bella Swan before the time we had was up; when the Volturi guard members Kai brainwashed into believing they were close to finding us on the other side of the planet became self-aware of the compulsion, then our training and work would be put on hold whilst we figured out where to go and how to stay alive.

And whether it would resume at all after that was another matter entirely.

"We'll all see what is to come. Only time will tell." He seemed to understand what I meant by this and dropped his smile. I did not want to add to unwelcome depression that had captured us in this moment but I could not stop myself from saying what I said next. "Whether I am successful in my mission or not, things are only going to get worse for us all before they can begin to get better."

* * *

We walked in silence until the damp sand and wet pebbles turned into concrete and we were once again on a road. We both knew it would have been by far a great deal easier for Jacob to phase and the two of us to run through the forest until we parted ways at the border but neither one of us brought it up; it seemed neither one of us was in any hurry to get home. This time with Jacob had been pleasant; he was easy to talk to and with him the silence between conversations did not feel uncomfortable or strained as they did with Edward and the Cullen's.

I had spent only a short time with him but it was easy to see why Bella had fallen. Not only was he attractive physically but he was a gentle soul – yet at the same time unafraid to voice his opinions and defend those who've touched his heart. Though this reunion must have been just as difficult – if not more difficult – for him as it was for Edward. Edward had been fortunate enough to have Bella's love in return for what was going to be an eternity but Jacob had loved a girl, had seen her love for him in return and then was left to watch her run back into the arms of someone who had broken her heart.

"So, we're here." His voice distracted me from my thoughts and sympathy, and to my surprise we at a crossroads. The path ahead of me lead towards Forks, the one behind us back the way we had come and the one curving to the left lead towards the highway.

"I suppose I'll see you soon." I told him, genuinely wondering when I would next have the opportunity to spend some time with someone who wasn't wanting to get in my pants and someone who wasn't Alice. I set off walking but he reached for my hand and tugged on my fingers.

"Wait!" He urged and I pulled my fingers free. I may have liked him over several of the others but that did not mean that he could touch me whenever we pleased. Personal space was still a concept the people of Forks had yet to discover. I began to ask him what he was doing but he spoke first, an idea lighting up his dark eyes. "I want to show you something." He peered over his shoulder towards the forest.

"I don't have the time, Jake-" I argued but he dropped his head back and grinned.

"Please? It's not that far from here, I think you'll like it." He pleaded with his puppy dog eyes.

 _Puppy dog_ eyes? I amused myself.

"I suppose Kai can wait another half an hour." I sighed begrudgingly.

"Yes!" He exclaimed, flashing his pearly whites my way as he let go and set off not down any of the roads but towards the trees he'd had his eye on. So much for staying clean. He ran ahead but I walked at a relatively human pace behind him, knowing that if I were to run by his side I would have to slow down. He may have been equally as fast in his wolf form but as a human he was nothing but mundane. I listened to the sounds of the forest, the chirping birds, hooting owls, the squirrels darting from branch to branch, tree to tree and knocking fragile leave to the ground as they lived their insignificant little lives.

I had lost sight of Jacob but his scent lead me farther uphill, tackling the incline of the mountain. We did not stay too far from the ocean as the crashing waves echoed between the thicket along with the cry of gulls. When I found him again he was wiping sweat from his brow and rubbing his hands on his already dirt smudged shirt.

"This had better be worth my while." I snarled, a bare hint of joke to my voice. Using my hand, I flipped over a fallen trunk and landed in a puddle of fresh mud. I cared not for the boots but more for my safety as Alice would have something to say about it. A few moments later he parted a mass of tangled and dead leaves aside and strolled on through. I followed.

We emerged from the forest onto what appeared to be the edge of a cliff overlooking the ocean. The curving edge only a few feet from the treeline, a risk to anyone who happened to stumble across it unaware of the dangerous drop far below. Jacob stood stupidly close to the edge, his boots scratching up craggy broken pieces of stone and dirt, tuffs of dead grass were snatched away by the wind and carried to the sea; which looked a beautiful dark shade of blue-green due to the dusk.

"What are we doing here?" I asked, lifting both hands as well as a brow. This place was hardly exhilarating. Jacob did not answer, instead he was moving; I turned to find him unlacing his second boot and unbuckling his belt. Any other time, any other place, seeing a man undress would grant me with a small modicum of satisfaction, but here on the edge of a cliff and with a man who'd already turned me down twice today? It made no sense. (Unless he'd changed his mind? I'd had sex in much weirded places than this.)

"We…" He paused as he tugged his shirt up and over his glorious body, balling it up and dropping it to the ground without a shred of care for it anymore. "Are going cliff diving." He nodded to the ocean and put his hands on his hips.

"Cliff diving?"

He forced his socks into his boots. "Yeah, we jump from here into the water. Over and over." I did not ask for an explanation of the activity. The name was self-explanatory. But what possible gain could come from throwing myself off a cliff? In the past, I had done so numerous times and for many reasons: the most recent of which was when I threw myself from the highest mountain range in all of Alaska just to give myself a few extra seconds to get to Kai and safe his life. And that mountain was ten times higher than this one.

"And why would I want to do that?"

"For fun!" Goosebumps rose to the surface of Jacob's coppery skin but if the cold bothered him he failed to show it.

"Fun!" I scoffed, "This is your idea of fun? Oh, Jacob. You need to get laid." He laughed wholeheartedly and nodded, rolling his eyes.

"Tell me about it." He mumbled but made no move to get dressed. "Us Wolves do it to loosen up. To show off to the new recruits. Bella did it." He added suddenly.

"Bella Swan – innocent, fragile, accident prone Bella Swan jumped from this cliff?"

"Yeah! Almost got herself killed too if I hadn't found her and pulled her ashore." I tried to picture Bella doing such a thing but found it difficult. Better yet…I tried to remember. Remember as I done with the Rabbit, but to no avail.

"Why on earth would she do such a thing? I understand you mutts, you lot aren't as easy to kill – well, - you're harder to kill than humans, but Bella?" I was confounded.

"It was after Edward left. She was going through a hard time, tried to distract herself from it by doing stupid shit. Things Edward wouldn't like. Driving and crashing motorcycles, jumping off cliffs. That kind of stuff. Only she didn't realize how bad the waves were that day." He stretched his arms, his muscles rolling beneath his skin. He approached the edge, his bare toes hanging over. His smile had faltered. "I'd never been so scared up until that point. When I pulled her out of the water and she wasn't breathing. She was so pale. She looked dead. My heart stopped. I don't know what I would've done." He sucked in deeply through his nose and I copied just to taste the salt in the air. "Then she did die." He looked up at me, smiling again but this time his smile was closed and he could only force one corner of his mouth to move.

I did not like to see Jacob sad. I did not care for the miserable air his story had created. He went to speak again but just to stop him I shoved him lightly on the shoulder and sent him sprawling into open air. He yelled out a long, flat tone before hitting the water with a slap that made even me cringe.

I squatted down and tore up a patch of grass, watching as he resurfaced. His mop of black hair covering most of his face. He tread water for a second before letting out a howl of laughter and cursing my name.

"Hey! You were right!" I hollered back, "This is fun!"

"Your turn!" He yelled up to me. I glanced towards the town. No one could really see us from here and not at this time of day. "Come on! The waters great!" He teased. I really should have told him another time and gone home to Kai. I should have resumed our training and worked hard on my mind, I should have done a lot of things.

"Eh. Fuck it." I shrugged and flung myself after him.

The air and wind rushed by at an impressive speed but the world refused to blur. I saw the water rise as I fell and I hit the water like a stone, delving deep into the murky depths. Opening my eyes, I found myself in an endless world of green, grey and black. Above the water the waves did not look very angry but beneath the water the current tried savagely to weigh me down, determined to tear me apart.

It was strong but I was by far the stronger party. It took no effort for me to kick my way upwards. When I broke the surface, I threw my head back, my wet hair slapping against the back of my soaked shirt. I searched for Jacob only to find him standing on a small patch of sand beneath two stretching pieces of rock. The forest behind him presumably leading back the way we had come. He looked happy, happier than I had seen him before. He clapped and I bowed my head, bobbing up and down in rippling sea.

He cupped his hands. "Race you to the top!" He roared, bouncing backwards into the green. I frowned, unsure if he really thought winning was a possibility. I shook my head again and wiped the water from my eyes, staring up at the charcoal grey face of the cliff: broken, sharp, jagged, and a piece of cake. I dug my fingers into the rock then scaled the side of the cliff. I rolled over the edge just as he stumbled through the trees but before I had a chance to speak, to stand upright, he kept going. He tackled me like a football player and the world spun around me as we hurtled back to the sea, laughing all the way down.

* * *

When I returned home later that evening my training did not only resume but it intensified. Kai was displeased I'd spent so long out but also pleased I'd had some fun. Though after a shower he begun – and failed to stop – reminding me repeatedly that we had only a few short weeks before the spell he'd cast on the brainless members of the Volturi guard (Currently searching the Middle East and Asia for an imaginary Bella) wears off and they report back to Aro of Kai's betrayal. Then Aro would send a full battalion here. We hoped to be long gone by the time they showed up, with or without my memories.

It was the first of October when I saw the Cullen's again. Only a few days had passed since Alice had snatched me away from the peace and quiet of the apartment to look around my old home and journey to the reservation to introduce myself to the Quileute Elders. A few days but the freedom I'd experienced in them had been bliss. I spent my nights (and sometimes my mornings, if I were feeling up for it) sat on the floorboards across from my tutor working on controlling my shield. I'd successfully located it and had been able to dig my metaphoric fingers into its walls and push. It felt ridiculous to confess but it felt as if my mind were slowly growing, expanding like a balloon. I hadn't yet gathered the strength to stretch as far as another person but Kai was over the moon with the progress we had made.

It was enough for him to issue a break and a trip to Forks, if only to get away from the apartment and training for a while. Though when we arrived at the Cullen home we found we were not their only visitors.

He slammed his foot on the breaks at the start of the road leading to their lawn. His eyes alert with panic. "There are others here." He said when he caught their scents. Unlike he, I knew the scents and identified them immediately. The fighter in me settled and I flexed my clenched fingers.

"It's okay. It's the Denali Coven – they're like distant family to the Cullen's. I met them a while back, I was with them when you showed up in Forks." He took my word for it and continued down the road.

"Can we trust them?" He was no longer in a joyful mood but cautious of these strangers.

I took a moment to answer. "I believe so." And I did. I may not have placed my life in their hands but they were close enough to Cullen's for me to say they could be trusted. Perhaps Irina was the only exception, but I remained true to my word.

When we turned onto the lawn there was already another car parked there, a silver one and most definitely belonging to the Denali's. When our engine cut off I heard muffled voices and footsteps as they all came to greet us. They all looked stunning, which annoyed me. This was Kai's first time meeting the Denali sisters and I felt unusually protective of him; I had come to learn of the sisters' history with seducing willing men and leading them to their deaths – the origin of the legend of the succubus. Of course, Kai would not fall for their spell of beauty but discovering just how many innocent men had fallen prey to their desires had left me feeling somewhat protective.

"Isabella." Kate greeted me with a nod, Irina ignored me. However, Tanya smiled and opened her arms to hug me as if were old friends. In the past, I would have used her open arms and exposed torso to punch a hole through her chest, but now she was an ally and that kind of behaviour would be frowned upon. I hugged her back, cringing internally. I was not much a hugger, not unless we were naked and fucking.

"Pleasure to see you all again." I lied.

"The feeling is mutual." Tanya said sweetly into my ear before leaning back. Her eyes flicked over my shoulder to Kai.

"Uh – This is Mordecai." I shrugged and tucked my palms into my jeans.

"Kai, Please." Kai swooned, cocking his head to the side and putting on that charm he'd practically perfected.

"So, your abuser was saved after all. How wonderful." Irina commented, destroying the civil mood between us all. It took Kai's arm gripping my own to stop me from snapping back at the bitter vampire, but I found the strength to do so. I had come to realize Irina's unpleasantness carried with her wherever she went and infected whomever unfortunate enough to meet her. Irina bared her teeth briefly at my move before she bounded her way back into the house.

"Don't listen to her." I told Kai but he'd already shrugged off the comment.

"Irina has always found trouble in trusting strangers. I'm Tanya." Unlike her sour sister, Tanya was very much interested in making Kai's acquaintance. She offered him her hand and he accepted it. Her fingers hung in the air for a split second as if she were expecting him to kiss them but – luckily for the two of them– he let them drop, much to her bewilderment. I was sure Tanya had little experience with being turned down. She was beautiful after all with her strawberry-blonde, loose ringlets that twisted and curled down the nape of her neck, getting lost in the fur-lining of her coat. Her lips matched the shade and she'd even powdered her cheeks to give the impression of a touch of heat. And though Kai was a smooth-talker, a lady killer, he was in love with me and would show no disrespect, even if I took none from it.

"Hey." Was all Kate said before Tanya glanced her way. "Um – glad you're alive?" She sounded as if she weren't particularly bothered about meeting Kai. Which was why she was my new favourite.

"Pleasure," Kai finally murmured. I peered between them as Carlisle and Esme walked over with Eleazar and Carmen by their side. He looked uncomfortable but held out his arm to beckon Kai and I forward.

"Eleazar, Carmen. You remember Isabella."

"Isabella, how are you?" Carmen was talented at sounding like she cared.

"Well. Thank you. How is Astrid?"

Everyone laughed as if I had told a joke I myself did not understand. Nor did Kai but he laughed anyway as to be included. Carmen titled her shoulder and I peered over towards the house and – and Astrid was perched at the top of the steps leading to the doors, licking her paw. I brushed past the others and strode as quickly as possible, careful not to frighten her away. She looked up as I approached but did not flee, instead she arched and stretched her paws out before stepping onto my knees when I sat by her side. I smiled as the cat forced her small head beneath my hand and I scratched the top of her head as she purred. The affection I had for this cat was greater than that I had for Edward.

"- And this is Mordecai." I glanced up as Camren and Eleazar shook hands with Kai.

"Ah. Yes. It is a pleasure to see you…again." Eleazar said.

Oh, that was right. I only just recalled that Eleazar and Kai had met before in the seventeen-hundreds, when Kai himself had been but a newborn. It took Kai only a second to recall this, his eyes widening at the memory.

"You were there the day Aro made me a guard." He said matter-of-factly.

"I was. I'm sorry to say I knew what he had planned for you but did nothing to stop it."

"I can't blame you. You would have put yourself in danger."

"Thank you. But as it would turn out both of us have found ourselves away from Volterra and Aro at last."

The two begun to share stories about what it was like that day, explaining to Carlisle, Esme, Eleazar and the others the details of their first meeting. I listened in but was more occupied with the cat on my lap to join in. The front door opened and Rosalie spotted me.

"Tanya seems to be awfully friendly this evening." Rose made no attempt to hide her grin as she made her way over to me but kept her eyes on the two others. Tanya and Kai both heard her comment but offered only mutually awkward glances our way before resuming their conversation.

"I'm not worried." I told her, folding my arms and leaning back against porch.

"Really? I would be. She's had her eye on two of your lovers."

I realized what she meant. "She and Edward-?" The question hung in the air. The thought of she and Edward did not confuse me in the slightest. In fact, it made perfect sense. I found myself unusually encouraging the possibility of Edward and Tanya. They were both beautiful in the same way, and to me would make a perfect match.

"No – it never went very far. Edward could not bring himself to care for her romantically." Rosalie said, reaching across to stroke Astrid's swinging tail. I could not figure out why. She was a little out there but she was beautiful. Though Edward never seemed to be that interested in appearances, otherwise he wouldn't have chosen an average, pale, blotchy human. I heard the rustle of something in the forest and Astrid caught it too, her head snapped in the same direction, the hairs on her back standing up. A rodent, probably. I could imagine Astrid leaping into the ferns to hunt whatever it was.

The thought of Astrid hunting a living creature reminded me that I had still not fed and the burn of my thirst was getting worse. Even Astrid's blood smelt unbelievably good. Though the thought of harming Astrid caused an ache in my heart. An ache I had only ever felt towards the dark-haired man across the garden.

"Isabella, are you okay?" Rosalie wondered with genuine concern on her beautiful face. As if somehow sensing that the very essence running through her thin veins that gave her life was tempting the lucky individual she'd allowed to stroke her, Astrid leapt upright and slinked into the house. Funny, how the blood of a cat could still put me on edge. Could still tempt the hunter. I refused to take in another tempting breath but nodded. When Astrid's scent faded behind her I let out an exasperated sigh, forced on a humble smile and replied.

"I will be once I have fed." I told her.

"Will you be hunting tonight?" Rose asked almost casually. _Will you be murdering, tonight?_ It made me smile but I did not explain why. Murder meant little to our kind, both she and I – everyone in this garden – knew that all too well.

"I don't know." I answered honestly. I had been thinking a lot recently about the arrangement I had made with Billy Black, Jacob's father. I'd promised him that I would only feed from blood bags which Carlisle could steal from the emergency room, and though Carlisle had been more than willing to do so when I told the Cullen's what the Chief of the Quileute tribe had demanded of me, I was not overly eager to make good on my promise. He wouldn't know if I hunted in Port Angeles, and what he did not know could not harm him.

"Well if you are, you'll have to wait until midnight." She informed me.

"And why is that?" I asked, wondering why she thought she could tell me when and when I couldn't feed.

"We're taking you out somewhere, to visit another place and tell more stories."

Brilliant. "Alice's idea, I presume."

"It wasn't mine…" Scolded Alice as she skipped over, clinging to Jasper's arm. "It was Rosalie's."

I glanced sideways accusingly at my friend. "You disappoint me, Rose. You had such potential."

* * *

We left the Cullen home at ten that same evening. And by 'we' I mean myself, Edward, Alice, Jasper, Rosalie, Emmett and Kai. Carlisle and Esme chose to stay home and entertain their houseguests. They said the place the others were to show us was not a place they spent very much time. I knew what they meant the moment I realized where we were.

"I fail to see what's so entertaining about a High School. Especially one in Forks." I said as the seven of us made our way across the abandoned parking lot towards Forks High School.

"This is where we first met, kind of." Alice sang as she led the way. I had already paid a visit to this sad little place my first evening in Forks when I had been hunting Victoria down and following what I'd believed to be her scent to this very building – only now did I recognize the scent as the Cullen's and not Victoria or her companions. I'd argued about coming here but Rosalie – whom too my surprise had been the one to suggest it – was adamant that it could be beneficial to see the place Edward and I had first met. Alice had argued a – in her opinion – stronger case: it would be fun.

"Did you play football?" I asked Emmett when I caught him glancing up at the wooden signpost built onto the hilltop to the left. It read 'Forks High School. Home of the Spartans.' I remembered seeing this very sign my first night and mocking how pathetic it was.

"Me? Nah." Emmett shrugged the thought off but from the way he said it I could tell he would not have minded being quarterback. "I'm too good for anyone in this town." He winked and I smiled.

"I played." Kai said, "When I was just a boy. I would run in the streets with the other children." I did not know too much about Kai's life before joining the Volturi. He had never been interesting in reliving his own memories. I imagined he would have made an adorable child, despite the fact I loathed children. Edward caught up with us but did not intervene. I did not need to bother asking if he played. I would imagine Edward as the gloomy, morbid kid who sat beneath the bleachers scowling. With Edward and the conversation we'd had earlier on the mind, I bumped his elbow and shrugged.

"What's the matter, Edward? Don't you want to go back to where it all started?" I took his hand in my own and tried to disguise my surprise at how soft his fingers were. I then skipped forward and spun beneath his arm, prancing like a love-struck child at a ball. Edward's body stiffened, his eyes hardened but a smile tugged on the corner of his lips

"Sourpuss" I muttered beneath my breath. Kai was smiling along with the others. He seemed to be able to tell I was joking, attempting charitably to cheer Edward up. That my hand touching his meant nothing.

"Let's go." Alice called and I turned in time to see her kicked off the ground and soar a good twenty feet into the air before her tiny form vanished over the edge of the rooftop. Jasper was next to jump, followed shortly by Emmett and Rose who went hand in hand. Kai didn't wait for me, he flew up after them and landed by their side.

"I'm only here because it could help you." Edward said suddenly from behind me. I straightened from my stance to face him, my brow lifted questionably.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean visiting old places does me more harm than good. For you, it's a chance to relive your old life but for me, it's a reminder of what I've lost."

What a miserable, melancholic man. He had been doing well the other day, he'd smiled and he'd joked. I hoped to see that Edward again soon. I didn't know what to say so I said nothing at all. I turned, bent my knees before kicking up from the ground. My hand caressed the wooden wall surrounding the rooftop as I flipped my body over and landed steadily on my feet. Alice was across the way, opening the same skylight I'd used to break in the first time.

We all looked at one another before she shrugged. "Let's go." And he jumped inside.

* * *

The halls were dark and of course abandoned this time of night. It was exactly as it had been the first time I'd seen it, only with a fresh wave of body odour, deodorant and blood. Our footsteps were the only sound; the tapping of Alice's heels and the squeaking of Kai's shoes bounced off the walls.

"Aww." Alice said as she lay her hand flat against one of the greyish blue lockers. "This one used to be mine."

"I'm surprised it isn't bejewelled." Kai teased.

"It was." Jasper said, earning himself an accusing look from Alice for telling us. I laughed along with the others until Alice turned away and stormed off like a child throwing a tantrum down the hall.

"They made me remove them." She sounded sincerely disappointed.

"Some people have no sense of style." I joked, moving to follow her.

"Clearly." She sang, walking backwards with a spring in her step. We moved silently through the halls, barely speaking, just looking. I'd seen dozens of high-schools in my time. I'd seen schools when they were nothing but a bunch of peasants in torn rags in a ramshackle barn. There was nothing spectacular about this place at all: a handful of small buildings made up of dull, colourless classrooms. The most interesting place so far had been the principal's office and that had only been because of his secret stash of "cigarettes" hidden beneath his desk.

It wasn't long before Emmett lead the way through a set of blue doors into the largest room yet; the cafeteria. The trays, condiments and trolleys to collect food were on the far side of the room beyond two dozen round tables. It was dark in here; the only light came from the full moon shining in through the east wall which was made up entirely of glass panels and doors.

"This is where we first saw you," Jasper told me. I had been right the first night in this place, that the table in the corner _did_ belong to one or more immortals. It had never occurred to me that vampires were attending school and not hunting for potential prey. As if they'd had an unspoken agreement, they sat in their allotted seats, smiling at the memory. Kai and I looked at one another, communicating only with our eyes.

"You were sat over there." Alice said, pointing with a painted nail to a table across the way. I strolled over to the table and circled it, pulling in the scents of the humans who'd sat here earlier that morning but found nothing familiar. I tried to picture human Bella looking at the Cullen's, at Edward specifically; swoon and in love. No, agaian I tried to remember.

"Oh!" Alice cried after a minute of silence. "Show her the lab!"

"What's special about the lab?" I asked, disappointed with myself for not being able to remember as I had with Jacob.

"You'll find out when you get there," She shoved me lightly towards the doors then went to move Edward.

"We aren't going with them?" Kai asked, his heavy brows hanging low on his eyes. I would have wanted him to come but Alice shook her head.

"No, let them do this one on their own." She said. Kai looked over the short girls' messy head of hair to meet my eyes, pleading with his own. I doubted he wanted to be left alone with the other Cullen's, especially when there was nothing to do but wait for my return. I shrugged, not prepared to take on Alice or her rule.

"I'll be back soon." I told him, nodding a promise. He nodded back, understanding and then leaned back against one of the tables.

I followed Edward willingly away from the others and back through the school. Thankfully he didn't speak to me or even look my way until he reached the science block and he stopped in the threshold of another classroom. The lab we stepped into smelt heavily of a variety of chemicals and plant life. It was a simple lab with a single desk in the corner at the front of the room for the teacher and several rows of empty desks before a wall of windows. Edward stood behind me in the threshold just taking in the room as a whole. I second glanced just in case I had missed something but I hadn't. It was only that this place meant something to him when it did not to me.

"What happened here?" I wondered as I slowly made my way between the desks, tapping my fingers across the smooth surface.

"This is where we first met. No one sat next to me, no one needed to until you started school and needed a new lab partner." One thing I noticed about Edward: he always looked down when he smiled. He moved further into the room, his eyes on one specific desk by the window. I arched a brow and he answer my unspoken question with a curt nod. I hopped onto the desk and crossed my ankles, leaning back on my elbows.

"How did it go?"

"Terrible, the first day. It was the first time I caught your scent and it almost destroyed me. You've no idea how difficult it was for me to stand being in the same room as you and not kill you."

"I don't know how you did it. But then again, I don't know why you and your family would want to give up human blood in the first place, but to each their own. If it were me I probably would have given in."

"I considered it. It took every ounce of strength I had to refrain from lunging at you, but I knew if I did then I'd have to kill everyone else in the room. Every second was agonizingly painful but I thought about my family. I'd ruin all Carlisle had built for us here and we'd have to move away again because of me."

"You're strong." I told him, unsure on why I'd complimented him. It sounded strange on my tongue, to compliment Edward without mockery in the words. It was true though, to be able to resist the blood of your Singer is an accomplishment for even mature vampires. Though I had never met many who had _chosen_ to resist the kill. I wondered if I had a singer? Who they were? where were they? Would I kill them immediately or attempt to hold off to savour the moment?

"Should we go back?" Edward asked, jerking his chin towards the door. I shrugged and hopped off the table to join him. I'd expected him to go on a little longer to reminisce in excruciating detail about the first time he saw Bella, how beautiful he was and how it was love at first sight and all that other bullshit.

We met the others on the way back (Alice had seen when we'd been returning and came to meet us) and made our way back through the lonely hallway to the skylight.

"Wait!" Alice gasped, we spun to find her at the end of the hall. She was staring at a wall. "Here," Alice said calling me over. I moved to stand by her side. She was looking at one of a wall of framed photographs, each showing the entire student body clad in mustard yellow graduation gowns. The photographs were named by the year, going as far back as black and white photographs. She pointed to the body graduating a year ago, or more specifically, four students on the right-hand side.

I recognized one of the boys. I had seen him too my first night in this small little town. The jock with the unkempt blonde hair and smug, boyish grin. He had seen me too and had double-glanced as I passed but I hadn't realized at the time that he was staring not because of my indisputable beauty but because he probably recognized my face. The girl he had his arm around (assumingly his girlfriend) was pretty for a human: clear face, broad smile, mousey brown locks teased to suit the shape of the cap, hand on hip in pride. The other girl was much more of a natural beauty with hair as black as Kai's but as long Rosalie's; yellow glasses lit up her dark eyes and complimented her olive complexion. Her boyfriend (if he was lucky) was fist pumping the air and biting his lip, cap already high above the others, his chin-length sleek black hair a blurred mess.

"That's, Mike, Jessica, Angela and Eric." She pointed to them individually so I would know who was who.

"Who were they?" I asked, curious as to why she was showing them to me.

"They were your friends." She told me. My eyes involuntarily widened at this as I had not expected Bella to have friends that weren't werewolves or vampires. She didn't seem the type to make conversation, to want to get to know someone else. I don't mean that in a shallow way – hey, she could have been shallow for all I knew – but from what I had heard about her she was an outcast, quiet.

The suffer-in-silence type.

"Where are they now?" I wondered but I didn't truly care. Which I suppose should have bothered me.

"Jessica, Angela and Eric are at colleges. Mike's father died last year so he came home and ended up managing the shop his mother owns. It's sad, really."

"Hmm." I murmured. Sad indeed.

"We'd better go." Emmett called. "Carlisle won't want us to risk being seen."

Alice nodded and together we flew up and out of the skylight back to the roof. We leapt down to the ground and made our way down a set of stone steps into the same parking lot as before.

"Edward?" Rosalie said from behind. "Did you tell Isabella about what happened here?"

He glanced over his shoulder and then smiled. "Where she first started to suspect there was more to us than meets the eye." He added. I looked around the empty parking lot. Nothing out of the ordinary to my eyes, other than the fact it was on a slope which seemed unusual.

"What happened?" Kai asked, coming to a halt and by doing so stopping the others.

"The ice was pretty bad," Edward explained, tucking his hands into his jacket pockets. "Bella was on this side of the lot, we were on the other." He glanced back towards a section of the parking lot by the steps we'd come down after leaving the school. I imagined their cars – looking out of place in this small, simplistic town – parked in a row by that far wall. "A van lot control and swerved on the ice."

"It would have crushed her if Edward hadn't jumped in the way, knocked the van aside with his hands." Alice praised.

"In front of everyone." Rose very clearly scolded.

"And no one saw?" I wondered, imagining the scenario playing out in my head.

"Fortunately, not." Edward said, "But she did. She knew I was not by her side when the van swerved, she knew I'd somehow crossed the space in a second and she wanted to know why. It was when she began her mission to discover what we truly were."

"And now look where we are." Emmett said. "A lot can happen in three years."

"Tell me about it." I laughed.

The others seemed to be heading back the way we had come but a thought came to mind. The conversation I'd had with Rose earlier. "Actually, I'm not coming back just yet." I said, dropping behind. The six of them turned to face me, each with curiosity in their golden eyes. Kai's red ones showed me he already knew. I reached up and wrapped my hand around the base of my throat, feeling the scratchy burn of the thirst. I'd left it far too long and if I didn't hunt that night then the next time I caught the scent of particularly alluring blood I may not have had the strength or willpower to hold back. "I think it's about time I handle my thirst."

They had all hunted already so I would be alone, and I think I would have preferred it that way. I doubted any of the Cullen's would have felt comfortable watching as I took innocent lives anyway and Kai – well with Kai I had no issue of him watching but again, I was nearly beyond the point of no return and if he were to make any indication of being interested in _my_ prey then I knew there was a possibility of my harming him to ensure the kill was mine.

"I'll meet you at home." I told him and he nodded, not in the mood to argue and to argue with a hungry vampire was never a clever choice. I turned then ran back at the school. I ran fast, building up speed before I kicked off with all my might and soared high over the building and back towards town to begin my hunt.

* * *

Asher's Note:

Hello Readers! Chapter Twenty-One is here! Sorry it took a while for me to update. I've been very busy with work lately and our schedules have changed meaning I am doing more hours. I do try to write a little every opportunity I get. Not a great deal happens in this chapter. I was re-watching New Moon and imagined Jacob attempting to convince my Isabella to join him in a few jumps and I really wanted to include it here. To show that he is one of the few to make her smile and have fun. We skip a few days and discover a little of her progress, I did not want to show too much of the training as there is only so much to describe when they are sat on the ground for twelve hours. I did bring back the Denali's in this chapter; I feel we did not get enough of them in the series and I myself am very intrigued by their relationship as a family and the legend of the Succubus. (Of course, Astrid had to come back also.) I also wanted to include a scene where Isabella visits the school with the Cullen's who show her places that meant something to Bella. The lab, the cafeteria, her friends, etc. Speaking of her friends, we will be seeing one of them very soon…

This was kind of a messy chapter in the sense that I rushed to get it finished and kind of threw two scenes I needed to put somewhere in the plot into this chapter just to have them in there. I hope you review and let me know how it worked and how it read. Also, I believe I've finished plotting out the chapters for the entire rest of the story. I have planned another 20 chapters, give or a take depending on length.

Also, I think I've included a lot of throwbacks to the original 4 books (And even the novella and genderbent version) in this story but if there is anything you would like to see at some point I would love to hear and maybe put it in. (As long as it doesn't clash with the plot I have planned, that is.)

As always, thank you for waiting and reading and I hope to update soon!

* * *

Responding to your reviews:

Goldielover: Thank you! Yes, memories are surfacing here and there but not at the rate they need to be and not in the way they would like. Also, Edward would have blown a gasket at her thoughts about Jacob. How did you feel about him and Leah? I wonder.

Traceybuie: Thanks for your review. I agree, but I thought as the chief of the tribe he would be suspicious of anyone and anything he doesn't understand, especially if they could hurt the people of this town. What Kai did to Bella is something he can't entire wrap his mind around – a little how Charlie knows something happened but doesn't really get it in Breaking Dawn. I like your idea and that's exactly what she plans on doing!

Hopestreet: Thank you! It is showing through and she doesn't really know how to feel about it yet. Isabella is starting to think and feel a little more with each passing day. She is smiling more, laughing more and is not as cruel as she once was.

Guest #1: You are on chapter 5 when you reviewed so you probably will not see this response, but I will reply anyway. You said you do not understand why Edward didn't run after Bella when she fled? His family stopped him, they did not know what was happening and did not want him to risk getting hurt.

Alice: Thank you! Sorry it has taken so long to update!

Guest 2#: What confounds me is how people can take the time to demand I update yet not take the time to give me advice on my writing or the story! I try to update when I can.

~Asher~


	22. Chapter 22

~ Isabella's POV ~

* * *

I was ravenous.

And in more ways than one.

I'd left Kai and the Cullen's a short while ago and now walked down the centre of a long and lonely road only a few miles from Port Angeles. It would've been easier to find someone in the middle of town, to snatch up some drunkard looking for a quick fuck and for _me_ to have my way with _them_ behind a dumpster in an abandoned alley but I was reminded by the scorch in my throat that I'd been deprived of blood – albeit of my own accord – for a while now and I may not have had the strength to be as stealthy as one needed to be when tearing someone apart in a busy place. Not to mention I doubted the humble people of Port Angeles were accustomed to seeing a woman drenched in blood patrolling their streets.

No. I needed somewhere desolate. Somewhere I could be just as loud as the screams of the one I killed and not have to worry about passer-by's overhearing. So, the road it was.

I was beginning to scold myself for leaving hunting this long and questioned as to why I'd thought it a good idea at the time? It had been too long since my last feed two full weeks ago – the day I accepted the truth, the lies and escaped the Volturi. I would not leave it so long next time. And it'd been more difficult that it should have been for me to resist slaughtering every human I passed on the way out of Forks. However, I would remain true to the promise I had made to the Cullen's: That I, Isabella of the Volturi – Or I guess just Isabella, now? – would not hunt nor kill within the vicinity of Forks and the surrounding areas. Whether or not I would remain true to the promise I had made to Jacob's father, Billy, and the other council members of the Quileute tribe, well, that had yet to be determined. When I meant that the deal I had made with Billy had yet to be determined, I meant starting tomorrow. It was too late for that tonight.

Though I'd been wandering along this same road for a while now, bored and hungry and a car hadn't passed this way in over half an hour. I was beginning to lose my patience. I'd resorted to stepping only on the single yellow line dividing the left and right sides of the road, stepping one open-toed pump after the other. Another ten minutes passed and just when I contemplated heading into town, I heard the low purr of an engine approaching.

I felt my spine tingle with anticipation; my throat burned in addition to the ache in my empty gut. I realized the shoes were just going to get in the way so I kicked them off and left them in the bushes, knowing all too well I would receive yet another scolding from the tiny Seer who'd bought me them. I wondered how far I could (and would) push Alice before she snapped.

A second before the car turned onto the road I let my body fall limp and collapse to the ground. My head hit the concrete with a metallic whack and the way I'd fallen left my hair spread out across the pavement and covering my face. The lights illuminated the cracked pavement with a blue-white gleam; I closed my eyes when the driver was close enough to see me. The inside of my eyelids lit up with light at the same time I heard the sudden squeal of breaks as the car skidded to a stop a meter away from my face. I lay impressively still and kept silent, unmoving, unflinching and surely appearing dead in this light.

I heard the driver – whom I'd already identified as a woman and a mature one from the sound of her voice and her lungs – gasp aloud and fumble around to unlock her seatbelt. The door opened, she stepped out and I felt the warmth hit me in waves with each step.

"Oh my god!" She cried, "Hello? Are you hurt? Hello?" She dropped to her knees by my side and caressed my cheek, moving aside the hair that covered my eyes. "Sweetheart, can you hear me?"

"Loud and clear." I answered, my eyes snapped open. Before the human had time to realize she'd been played, my teeth were tearing into the soft flesh of her throat. There was no Isabella in that moment. I'd become a Huntress. A predator who'd latched onto and would not release its unfortunate prey. She tried to scream, tried to fight but before she could make a sound I'd torn through her vocal cords and arteries. Immediately, I felt the warmth of her blood fill up my mouth, pour down my throat. The rich essence of life filled me with energy and power as it soaked into my body, into the living marble that made up my bones, organs and muscles. As it was absorbed by my veins.

She wept as she died. I could not hear her tears as they hit the concrete as the sound was lost in the splashing of her blood that pooled beneath us, but I could hear her whimpers. In the past, I admittingly got off on the sound. There had been times in my past I'd fucked and fed and it had only made the experience so much more memorable. But now I felt only discomfort, not regret but pity for the human woman I'd embarrassment that some part of me – that though was only a fictional memory – found pleasure and amusement in one's dying breath.

Her body was spent. Drained. Broken and empty.

That's when I heard a second car approaching. I found the strength to release the woman's body and spring to my feet. I was in no mood to make a run for it, in fact, this was perfect. I needed a distraction from the humanity creeping in and unfortunately for the driver I was still hungry. The driver stopped. I could see myself reflected in the windshield, illuminated by the headlines and glowing, my dark hair hanging down by my eyes which were once again just as brilliantly red as the blood pouring out of my mouth and dripping from my chin.

Instead of attempting to turn around, the driver (A man, this time) slammed his foot down hard on the accelerator and sped towards me. I smiled, shrugged and ran to meet him. He crashed into me, the bumper crumpled like paper and the car flipped high over my head, hitting the pavement upside down with a loud squeal of bending metal and shattering glass. The car skidded along the road, sparks flying up from the totalled vehicle. Silly human.

I brushed off my shoulders and frowned at the tears in my shirt. I kind of liked that shirt.

I heard a gasp for air, then the driver spat out a swell of blood along with a broken tooth or two. By the time I walked over he'd started screaming for help. The dashboard had caved in and glass shards marred the man's face and hands. His palms were scraped, and he winced as he attempted to hold himself up as he undid his seatbelt. I squatted down by the window and peered in.

"Need a hand?" I tore the belt and he crashed to the top – or now the bottom? – of his car.

"Get away from me!" He yelled, his deep voice vibrating in my ears. I frowned at him.

"Now that's not a very nice way to thank your rescuer!" I dragged him across the concrete before his totalled car and dropped him to a slump; our elongated shadows moved across the remaining length of the road, cast by the broken headlights. He groaned when he landed on his shoulder; broken shoulder bone, probably. "In fact, good sir, you should be apologising to me. You hit me, after all." He reached up and tried to pull the fragments from his hands, wincing at the stinging sensation. I crouched down and smiled at him when he caught my eye. His own widened in panicked response and he tried bravely to fight me off. His fist broke on contact with my cheek. He yelled, his cries of anguish were lost in the night.

"Please, please don't! Don't hurt me! I have a wife, children! Please!"

"Oh, a wife and children, do you? Would you prefer for me to kill them instead?" He didn't seem to find my joke amusing. It made me want to kill him quicker.

"Please!" Tears streamed down his cheeks.

"Well-" Wherever he worked, it required a name tag. It read Paul. "Well Paul…since you said please."

I stopped in my tracks, turned and begun walking back towards the forest.

"Really?"

"No." I laughed. I pounced. His cries ended with his life.

* * *

I stood to the side of the road, examining my work. I'd rearranged both vehicles, smashed a few more windows, punched a few added dents into the first car and then smashed one against the other. Black smoke poured through the shattered windows of the wreckage, polluting the air and irritating my nostrils, alongside the unusual scent of the petrol spilling out across the road.

I looked down at the cigarette lighter in my hand, dragged my thumb down the gear to create a spark, then I launched the lighter at the pool of gasoline. It lit up instantly, the fire became alive and swam like a snake towards the two vehicles. It took only a moment for them both two ignite and explode, the sound booming in my ears and echoing through the forest, sending rodents and birds fleeing in every direction.

I'd made the attack seem like nothing but a tragic car accident. The woman fell asleep at the wheel and crashed into the oncoming driver. A horrible, horrible accident and that was all. Knowing soon enough someone else would come along, notice the wreckage and call for help, I decided to leave the road I'd taken too and make my way back to Port Angeles. Sure enough of my sense of self-control to come across humans and not tear them to pieces without meaning to do it. I had enough self-control to hold onto until I could find the perfect, unfortunate, soul who would make my next kill of the night.

Once I was in the centre of town where I could be seen, I turned away from the streets and headed down the closest alleyway until I met a dead end. I checked over my shoulder to ensue no humans were crossing the opening before digging my fingernails into the crevices between the bricks and hauling myself up. It was a tall building, one of the tallest in town, an apartment building much like my own. As I scaled the wall, I peered into windows at sleeping children and parents watching television, an old woman asleep in her armchair, her cat asleep on her lap. It would have been easier to smash through one of those windows, take a life without having to worry about being seen, or heard, or the mess; but I couldn't bring myself to do it. I hadn't killed a child in a long, long time and even then, it had been beyond my control.

A memory I did not want to see but could never escape.

So, I continued to the roof where I looked over the rest of the town.

It was late but not late enough the streets were empty and though this was a small town with very little entertainment for anyone, the humans tried their best to make do with what they had. Groups of young adults strolled the streets, moving from bar to bar, nightclub to nightclub; in fact, they went in a circle as there wasn't very many of either of those. Still, they yelled and fought and laughed and loved as if they were having the time of their lives. I felt strangely sorry for them – not those humans specifically but humans in general.

Approximately eighty years of life. _Eighty!_ I had lived almost thirteen human lifetimes and would continue to live hundreds more. (That was if Aro didn't find me) but humans had to experience all life had to offer in just eight decades. After living the luxurious and wild life I have, it seems impossible to me now. Everything I do seems to be the hundredth time I've done it, and that includes disobeying Aro; albeit that one was exercised significantly less than others. Of course, I knew all of my memories were false – that's old news to me now. But the thing Is they are real for me. They may have been planted into my mind, but they are there and that means I lived them.

Kai may have killed Bella Swan and created me. He may have lied and fooled me, turned me into the monster I am today. The monster I ought to but do not feel ashamed of admitting I am but in return he had given me a long and full life. Don't get me wrong, that doesn't mean I'm ready to die anytime soon, but secretly I was grateful for the wonderful memories I'd had even if those wonderful memories were someone else's horrendous nightmares.

A high-pitched giggle captured my attention and I centred my focus on a young couple stumbling down the sidewalk. Arm in arm, gazing into one another eyes helplessly. A little in love, a lot intoxicated. They were heading away from the night scene, towards the ocean in the distance. Perfect. I followed just as silently as the wind, leaping from rooftop to rooftop and landing with just as much grace as a feather. I blended into the shadows, invisible to anyone and everyone. I followed the two further towards the edge of town, towards the pier it would seem. Fortunately for me, the two of them wanted to be far away from the nightlife, to be alone in a quieter part of town. Docks lined the opposite side of the pier, nothing grand of spectacular just the typical fishing boats, etcetera.

I figured the two lovers to be in their late teens, early twenties. The boy looked older than he was, probably because of the scruffy black beard I found myself oddly attracted too. (I had spent many nights in sorrow over the fact Kai would never grow a beard.) The girl, a plump girl wearing a blouse that was far too small for her and scuffed black jeans, was burning in the cheeks. The shade of red perfectly matched her crimson curls.

Crimson curls. The girl was lost from me, and instead my mind brought forth the image of another, with hair just as fiery as this human's: Victoria. We had yet to hear from her, yet to detect her scent anywhere in these parts. It seems when she had fled Forks, she had also fled the state. The wolves hadn't caught her scent in a long time, and neither had we when we first left to meet the Denali's. Well, to formally meet them. I had no idea on her whereabouts, but she was not a priority at this moment. If she returned, I'd kill her. Simple enough.

I only realized I'd let myself get distracted with thoughts of Victoria when a searing burn scratched the inside of my throat. I shook my head and shut my eyes tight, trying to focus. I latched onto their scents and listened to their rapidly beating hearts. Their warmth was powerful, I could feel it against my cheeks and my lips from here. They stopped by the side of a closed warehouse, or perhaps a boathouse. A small, single-story grey building not far from the water's edge. There were no lights on other than the one hanging on the wall outside, and no heartbeats within, no heartbeats anywhere close. It was just the three of us.

The boy pressed the girl up against the wall; she laughed in response. "You're so bad, you know if we get caught my dad will kill me."

 _He'll have to get in line._

The boy forced on a smile I had only ever seen on desperately horny fraternity boys, that kind of smug God's-gift-to-women kind of smirk. Even if I wasn't thirsty I would have killed him just for that. "You know I'm bad," He mumbled, pressing his lips against the side of her neck. The girl tensed and looked straight up at the stars, biting her plump lower lip. His kisses continued up and down her skin when he leaned into her; softly at first but they grew more desperate as his hands explored more and more of her curves. She groaned into him, giggling uncontrollably at the ticklish sensation.

"I've never done this before," She gasped aloud, a hint of hesitation in her voice.

"Don't worry about it," He shrugged, "I've got you, baby," Then suddenly he leaned in close and for a moment I wondered if he was going to bite her when he caught her earlobe between his teeth and nibbled on it carefully. A gasp of surprise from the girl made him jump, but she ran her fingers through his hair and moaned loudly into his collar. "You like that?" He asked with genuine amusement. She replied with a quick nod and tugged on the back of his hair to make him continue.

In the two of them I saw Kai and I, as I had always enjoyed it when he nibbled on my earlobe. I could tell this frigid human girl was feeling the very same tingling heat spreading throughout her body as I had felt ten thousand times. But had not felt in over a month. Was this happening? Was _I_ jealous of a _human girl?_ I had experienced pleasure in my time like no other ever had nor ever would but found myself crouched on a rooftop, watching some teenagers make out and grope one another and wanting to join in? It wasn't as if the boy was exceptionally beautiful either, he wasn't even pretty. He was average and boring and most certainly uneducated in the art of fucking – from the pained look on the girls face when he squeezed her breast too tightly.

"Let's get out of here," He whispered into her ear and she nodded and attempted to stand upright, dazed and dizzy from the excitement. At the idea of the two leaving, I realized that I had been wasting time just watching them when I ought to have been hunting. If I couldn't find pleasure from fucking someone, I'd find a different kind of pleasure a different way.

Before the two took a single step, I darted back to the opposite edge of the roof, spun, then set off sprinting. In half a second I crossed the rooftop and kicked off from the broken edge. I lifted high into the air effortlessly, my silhouette blocking out the moon in the clouds behind me, my shadow cast over the two of them as I came in to land.

I narrowed my eyes and barred my blood-strained teeth as a deep, reverberating growl rose from the bottom of my chest and shattered the silence of the night. "Sorry to interrupt." I said, meandering over to the two of them. They hadn't run yet, which meant they either weren't scared or were terrified. They had their backs against the wall; finger trembling at their sides. "I could tell you two were having an intimate moment."

The two exchanged a look before the girl focused on me again, frowned then her blue eyes widened and she leapt back into the boy's arms. "Is – Is that blood!" The curly haired girl exclaimed, pointing at my ruined shirt. I lifted the hem and shrugged.

"Yes. A shame, really, I kind of liked this shirt."

"Are you hurt?" The girl asked as she looked for a wound. They must have not seen me jump from the roof. A pity. It was an epic jump.

"Me?" I laughed, "Oh no, I'm fine, thank you. This isn't my blood."

"Then who's blood is it?"

"A little bit of some middle-aged woman – didn't get her name – and some guy called Paul. He was rude. Hit me with his car."

"Ar-Are they hurt?" She stuttered.

"They're dead. I killed them."

"You killed someone?"

"Oh, yes. It's my favourite hobby." I was playing with my food.

The boy withdrew a pocketknife. It was small, easily crushable. The blade only an inch longer than my pinkie. Steel in hand, he displayed a newfound and yet misplaced sense of confidence. "Back off! I'll use this."

"Marty," The girl wept, the arousal she had been emitting had been replaced with only fear. It tasted strangely delicious on my tongue.

"That won't hurt me." I beckoned to the knife as I begun to circle him. He moved, as did his friend.

"Want to bet? I'm used this before. Don't think I won't use it again just coz you're a chick!"

"A chick? Oh, If I wasn't going to kill you before I most certainly am now. I'm no…chick."

He lunged. I don't think the amazement I felt whenever I remembered just how slow humans were would ever disappear. I would have had time to lay on the ground and get back up again in the time it took for the human boy – Marty, apparently – to reach me. I stepped aside and watched as she stumbled and almost lost his footing. Now Marty stood in the spot I had been standing and in and I now stood in-between him and his girlfriend. I glanced over my shoulder at her and winked.

She looked over at Marty and I could see in her eyes she was considering running – but she had her back to the pier. If she wanted to flee, she'd have to get past me. "Nice try, Marty." I sang with laughter. He leapt at me again. The blade would have bent on impact with my throat, but another idea occurred and I decided to act on that one instead. Just before the blade touched my skin, I stepped aside and took a hold of Marty's wrist. I then pushed it forward past where I was stood and lodged the rusted blade deep into his girlfriend's throat.

There was a splash of blood and a new wave of warmth hit me and made me see stars. Her blood smelt intoxicatingly good. Marty yelled and dropped away, landing on his backside. Curl's stumbled back a step, reaching for her throat; a gurgle escaping her lips. Her heavy eyebrows dropped low in confusion, as if it took longer than I thought possible for her to register what had happened. Then, stupidly, she pulled the blade from the throat and it dropped to the ground with a metallic clatter. That's when the blood appeared. It spilled out down her neck, between her large breasts, darkening her shirt.

"Hayden!" Marty called, shaking his head as he crawled away from me and towards his girlfriend just as she fell aside. She reached for him, clawing at the arms of his leather jacket. She tried to say his name, but the knife had gone in too deep and severed too many important arteries. She gasped for breath, for any words that would come. But none did. And within seconds she was dead.

Marty remained sat there for another long minute before he reached and grabbed the blood-covered knife. He held it tightly in hand until his knuckles turned white. "I'll kill you!" He yelled through clenched teeth.

I tutted as I walked over. "Oh, Marty. Many have tried. Zero have succeeded."

I flew behind him, knocked the blade from his hand then wrung his neck until his spine broke. I sunk my teeth into his neck and drank greedily until he too was empty. By this point I was full, but with Hayden over there smelling so appealing, I decided I couldn't let her go to waste. When both bodies were drained and pale and starting to turn cold, I tugged on Marty's leather jacket until it slipped through his arms and left it on shore as I dragged them both into the ocean and buried them deep into the seabed.

When I emerged dripping, and smelling even fouler than before, I gathered all my hair into one hand and wrung out the seawater. Wrapping Marty's jacket around myself, I zipped up and headed back towards home.

A successful hunt, indeed.

* * *

Ten minutes later, on my way back to the apartment I caught someone yell a name that captured my immediate attention.

"Oh, shut up, Mike!" One of the teenagers called across the road. I spun in the air and landed, skidding across the concrete on another rooftop. I bounced upright and stood at the edge of the rooftop with my head low in the shadows. Sure enough, there he was, much to my amazement and disbelief. Mike. I found myself pleasantly surprised. An odd coincidence I just happened to cross paths with the very same Mike that had had crossed paths with my past self. The very same Mike I'd learned about earlier that evening. I wondered for a second what he was doing in Port Angeles – from the looks of it, a night around the town with his mediocre, small town friends. Not that Port Angles was any kind of fun, but these poor kids got what they could.

They too were just on their way out of a club, stumbling and clinging to one another like good friends, laughing at how Mike had apparently attempted to 'Pull' some woman who turned out to be almost three times his age. It made even me laugh.

Mike however looked embarrassed – you could tell from the rosy red cheeks and the sweat marks beneath his arms. He brushed his friends off however and continued down the street. I dropped down and followed a decent pace behind. Running into Mike had peaked my curiosity and since I had Marty's jacket covering my mess of an outfit, I thought why not follow behind and listen in on someone who according to Alice had been very much interested in little old me.

They five of them all went into a small, greasy take away at the end of the road and argued over who was paying this time. I stopped just outside the door but leaned in close to peer through the window but caught my reflection in the bright light to find that already my appearance was beginning to seem more lifeful. My cheeks were flushed and full and my eyes had come out their shadows, glowing almost as brightly as the luminescent sign flashing above the door.

"Hey! Order me the southern-fried chicken wrap. I love that stuff." I took in a whiff and almost gagged. How humans could bring themselves to eat that kind of food was beyond me. Though that felt a little hypocritical considering my diet.

I heard footsteps and took a step back to hide my face in the shadows. Some guy around their age was heading into the shop. He stopped at the door to take me in – a silhouette of some girl, wearing a big jacket, with long hair covering her face. I must have been a sight, even if they could not fully take me in. He shrugged and headed into the restaurant.

"Hey, Donny!" One of Mike's friends called and I heard them greet one another. Whoever this Donny was, he knew Mike and his friends. I knew what was going to happen a fraction of a second too late.

"Who's that chick watching you, Mike? Did you score?"

Shit.

"Chick?" And then Mike was at the window and staring at me. I knew I should have ran. Could have ran. I could have made it two blocks away by the time he made it from the counter to the window but I hadn't been thinking. I'd been wondering what he reaction would be upon seeing me and it was more exaggerated than I could have imagined.

"B-Bella?" He gasped aloud, his eyes just as wide as his open mouth. "Bella!" He called again and ran for the door.

I'd flown across the street and hurried at a pace that could barely pass for human to the closest alleyway.

"Bella!" Mike yelled, leaving his friends to hurry after me. I ignored him and acted as if I hadn't heard. It was the first thing I thought to do. Pretend I was someone else entirely. He kept coming. "Bella!" He was too close now to pretend that I hadn't heard him yelling.

"Sorry, you've got the wrong girl." I called over my shoulder in a British Accent, remembering that these days I was going by the persona of Sonya Andrews. He continued to follow.

"No – No, I know you! It is you Bella Swan!" He cried gleefully. Running to keep up with my fast strides. It was difficult to try and run away from someone and walk at a human pace at the same time.

"Shut up." I snarled sounding unintentionally feral. "I said you've got the wrong girl. Now fuck off, kid." I turned the corner of the alley to find…a dead end. The back exit of one of the clubs. An iron door that was presumably locked, a dozen overflowing green dumpsters, black garbage bags thrown about the place, a chain-link fence that was too high to climb without looking…more than what I appeared.

"Look at me!" Mike demanded in a firm tone I had not imagined him ever using. "Look at me Bella!"

I could have leapt onto the roof, took off into the shadows. Do what I must to stay hidden. But I felt that in doing so I would evade exposing myself as Bella Swan but would reveal my nature as a creature more than human. There was nowhere to go without giving away my abilities so I let out a defeated sigh.

"Fine. Have it your way." and turned to face him. I took him in now just as I had when I first saw him. He hadn't aged much in the almost three years since the graduation photo was taken; he looked relatively the same save for stubble and a little padding around the waist. I thought back to what Alice had said about how Mike's father died and how he left college and his friends and his young life to return to the dreary town of Forks to help his mother. In that time, in his grief, he must have lost whoever he had been.

"What's wrong with your eyes?"

"Unimportant." I answered. This was not good.

"You're dead." He said matter-of-factly. A statement and not a question. I wasn't the one he was trying to convince.

"Obviously not, Mike. Well – yes and no, technically. Bella Swan is dead, but I am not Bella Swan, but I am dead, but in a different way. It's very complicated."

"Well try and explain it to me! You – I mean – you died! We were there, we were told about it. You were in a crash or a fire or something! We…we went to your funeral, Bella? And…and why do you look so different?" Water lined his eyes, and a silver tear slid slowly down his cheek.

"None of that was real, and I used to be Bella Swan but I'm not anymore. I was human then now I'm a vampire. You don't need to worry about it."

"Vampire? What? You're not making any sense?" He laughed humourlessly. "Does the Chief know your alive? Jessica? Angela? Does…. does Edward know?"

So, Edward and Bella's obsession with one another was no family secret then. "No," I answered. "Bella's father doesn't know, neither do any of her friends. You weren't supposed to know. You're not allowed to know." I said just as the truth dawned on me. If I allowed Mike to leave alive he would tell others that he had seen me. Sure enough, no one would believe a word he said; Mike smelt of cheap Vodka and spilt beer. He'd seen nothing but drunken visions. But even then…any word he said about a strikingly beautiful woman he believed to be me…he witnessed fleeing over the rooftops…word could spread.

I know the Volturi. I _was_ the Volturi. I know exactly how far word travels and how easy it is for the Volturi to pick up on word of our kind, no matter how small. We had resources everywhere. If Mike told someone, the wrong someone, and word spread….

Aro would know. He would come.

I knew what I had to do.

The fact he was a friend of my past life and someone she apparently cared for deeply did nothing to change my decision.

"I'm sorry, Mike." I said, stepping closer.

"Why?"

"Because I'm going to kill you." He gulped and took a step back. Mike reeked of sweat, old aftershave, cheap vodka and cigarettes; remnants of his night around the town. But now, face to face with me, he gave off an odour that tasted almost pleasantly sour on my tongue. Fear.

"W-What?" When he smiled one corner of his mouth lifted higher than the other. Whether this only occurred when he forced on a smile or happened when he smiled naturally was unknown. His heartbeat accelerated and his palms were sweaty.

"I don't want to. I don't need to, I'm practically full but…" I let out a breath as I took another step. "You've seen too much. No one can know I am alive, you see, but you do. If only you had let it go then I could have left you to live your long mediocre life, but you insisted." I shrugged and let both hands drop to my sides with a slap. "So, the only solution to keep that you saw me a secret, is to kill you."

"You can't be serious?" He huffed again.

"Absolutely." I took another three steps and he leapt backwards, almost slamming into the wall. I caught his eyes flicker to the exit and the way we had come. "You won't make it." I told him.

"Okay, alright, if you don't want anyone to know I won't say anything. I promise."

"Again, my apologies in advance for your death and I wish I could let you live but if there is one thing I know about humans as a species? – other than that they taste good? – is that they cannot keep their promises."

And I leapt to kill my old friend

* * *

The moment my palm hit his shoulder his collarbone shattered. The force of the blow sent him flying backwards, slamming him into the stone wall. His head cracked against the brick and his eyes rolled to the back of his head.

He crumpled to the ground, unconscious. At least he wouldn't feel pain when he died.

Just as I went to crouch over his comatose body and sink my teeth into the fragile flesh of his throat, I caught wind of a dozen sets of footsteps heading my way, coming from above. I looked up to see several figures dropping down into the dark. I immediately thought of the Volturi and what I needed to do. Run. Fight. Flee. Kill. But they didn't attack straight away, and I had just enough time to catch their scents and recognize their faces in the shadows.

Then they attacked.

Some of the Cullen's and some of the Denali's, they'd come and without uttering a single word they tackled me to the ground as one. Their tremendous weight on top of me was beginning to crush me. Someone forced my cheek into the ground and I got an awful mouthful of dirty puddle water. I could hear them all talking then, Alice was instructing the others to hold down my legs and keep a firm grip on my arms.

"Let go of me!" I screamed, attempting to force myself free but their grip was too strong and I was too weak. Two more pairs of footsteps landed behind me and another set of hands attempted to hold me still.

"Jasper!" Alice called, "Calm her down,"

"No! Will you let go!" I yelled straight into Edward's face. He hadn't spoken but he had been the closest and it was so easy to get mad at Edward. I felt Jasper's ability affect and influence me instantly. It was as if every muscle in my body relaxed and I felt almost numb beneath them. I knew it was his Gift but I gave up fighting, I decided subconsciously that there was no point in it anymore. It reminded me of my second day in Forks, when I was tricked by Alice and ambushed by her and her family.

"I'll ask again," I sighed then I spat into the puddle. "Will you imbeciles please let go. I have control. I'm not mid-hunt." This fully structured sentence seemed to catch them by surprise. Alice flipped over someone – Kate, I guessed from the hair and the smell – and crouched down in front of me. She grabbed either side of my face and lifted it to look me in the eyes. She was still wearing the same clothes she had been earlier that evening, except now instead of a smile on her face she looked furious.

"You have control?"

"Yes! For the third time, for fuck's sake, Alice!" The tiny girl peered over my head and nodded once to the others. One by one they slowly released me and stepped away. When Edward's hands left my back, I rolled onto it and flipped up onto my bare feet. I took in them around me and tried not to throw a punch. They were all staring at one another and back at me, watching me with a careful eye as If I were suddenly not to be trusted. The only ones not here were Kai, Carlisle, Esme, Irina, Eleazar and Carmen.

"If you have control," Alice said, darting around me to keep eye contact, "Then why were you trying to kill him?" I realized then she must have seen it and rushed here along with the others to save Mike just in time. Speaking of Mike, he was still unconscious in the corner.

"Why does it matter to you?" I asked, suddenly defensive. I'd been enjoying my hunt when they attacked me!

"This is Mike Newton, that's why it matters!"

"I'm sorry. I didn't know you cared for him as a friend at all."

"I don't!"

"Then what's the problem?"

"The problem is-"

I kept silent when I heard footsteps and voices approaching.

"Mike!" A girl called.

"Newton, where are you?" Added a male with a deep voice.

"We need to leave." Alice declared. "Emmett, take him?" Emmett nodded and brushed by in a flash to haul Mike into his giant muscular arms like some hero from a story, carrying his damsel in distress.

"And go where?" Tanya asked. "It will take too long to return to Forks."

"We go to Bella's place." Edward said, speaking up for the first time. With the anger their interruption had caused still burning within, I considered taking a swipe at Edward simply for calling me Bella, but with the humans on their way and his family stood in a circle around us I thought it better to wait until I could get in a good shot. "Kai's there. He'll be able to erase Mike's memories."

I had never felt so stupid. "Damn it." I cursed, "Why didn't I think of that?" I could have easily just have taken Mike back to my place and have Kai erase that he saw me from Mike's mind. That way no one had to be hurt and I wouldn't have been ambushed. I suppose when in doubt, my first instinct is to kill.

"Good idea." Alice said, "Come on." And she crouched low before springing upright and flying into the air. The others followed her to the rooftop until there was only Edward and I remaining.

He was looking at me; he looked as if he were about to say something but instead he climbed up the wall and out of sight. I rolled my eyes.

I was in deep shit.

* * *

Together we hurried across town towards my apartment building; we were in the early hours of the morning now and the bluish black of night was beginning to turn silvery grey. Luckily, we managed to get inside just as dawn arrived. Before Alice could reach for my door it swung open to reveal Kai waiting for us.

He'd changed from when I'd seen him last just a few short hours ago. He'd showered and now wore tight fitting black jeans, a baggy white T-shirt and a _very_ cosy looking cardigan. It reminded me of an old shawl he'd bought centuries ago, one we often found ourselves entangled in when sprawled out before the fire.

"I wondered why I could hear a heartbeat approaching and smell blood in the air." He said, taking us all in, last of all Mike who still lay limp in Emmett's giant arms. His eyes found my own. "What mess have you got yourself into this time?" There was a hint of humour to his tone. One I didn't appreciate in this moment.

"I had it handled" Was my only explanation as I brushed past him into my apartment. The others followed.

"Handled? You tried to kill him." Alice snarled. I shrugged and watched Emmett carry Mike over to the couch and lay him down as gently as he could. Rosalie made her way to the tap to wet a cloth which she then passed to Kate who dabbed Mike's forehead. The headwound was not deep and would not scar. He'd have one hell of a headache and a concussion – and the broken collarbone – but other than that Mike Newton would be fine.

"This is Mike, right?" Kai asked, walking over to inspect him. "What did she do?" I scoffed. Any normal person would ask what happened to him but Kai immediately assumes I'm the one at fault. I was, but that was not the point.

"I don't know anything yet, but I had a vision. I saw Isabella killing him. We got there just in time." Alice replied. Edward moved around me to go and kneel by Mike's side. He was frowning and I realized he was looking into the human boy's thoughts.

"He'll wake up soon, he's already hearing snippets of what we're saying." Edward's voice was surprisingly flat. I was curious as to why he hadn't had his say yet but, as if he'd heard my thoughts, he looked straight at me with those judgemental golden eyes.

"Isabella, why don't you clean up? Mike should be awake when you come out. You don't want him to see you like that." Edward said, staring at my chest. Only now in this light and with the jacket unzipped could I see that the car that had crashed into me had truly destroyed my shirt. My breasts and stomach were almost fully on show. Not to mention all the burgundy blood.

"Whatever." I brushed past him and ignored them all completely on my way to the bathroom. I cared not about them seeing me naked but he was right in the sense I was filthy. I needed to shower.

* * *

My shower lasted longer than it needed to but I was in no rush to return to the others and earn my telling off. I argued back and forth with myself as I washed away the thick bloody bubbles from my stained body; whether it was physically or mentally didn't matter, I was a thousand years old! I don't get 'telling off's' I do what I want when I want and if you don't like it then you can try and stop me and certainly die trying. Yet I still did not want to go through that door and face the likes of Alice. She may have been sweet and annoyingly adorable but that tiny immortal was in the small handful of vampires I had ever feared. The others being my past masters.

I had just about washed off the human remains but the scent would still linger though there was little to do about that. I could have stayed in there another ten minutes picking blood from beneath my fingernails but I could tell by Alice tapping her heel on the floor repeating that she was growing impatient.

After dressing into some black leggings and one of Kai's T-shirts, I headed back into the main room. The apartment's now familiar smell (Which was pretty much the smell of Kai) cleared my head. To say I was in deep shit with the Cullen's for attacking Mike, I felt pretty damn good. The Hunt had rejuvenated me. My mind felt just as strong as my limbs and the burn in my throat had faded almost entirely.

"We've got company." Alice said softly. We all heard the buildings main doors open three floors below and a figure bound his way up the stairwell. I could tell it was Jake before he knocked on the door and let himself in. Jake's heart beat in a weird way. Faster than a human heart even when he wasn't in a rush.

He sought me out first. "Hey," He said. No one greeted him but me.

"Hi, Jake." I said.

Edward didn't mean to do it but he looked straight at me with his bushy brows folding in on themselves. I stared at him and frowned, awaiting him to say something but he just looked back at Mike. I realized what it was without his help. I had called Jacob 'Jake' just as Bella used to do. Did Edward worry that his recently lost love had returned from the dead just to fall for his old competition. Not only that. If both Bella and Isabella turned him down for Jacob…

I doubt his ego could take it.

"Is he okay?" Jacob asked, crossing his arms and nodding at Mike who had yet to wake. Jacob looked well. I hadn't seen him much since our day together at La Push. He was wearing a shirt which he didn't do often, but it was on inside out. I realised when he yawned that he must have been woken up by someone who'd told him what had happened.

"How did you find out?" Rose asked before I could.

"Carlisle called me. Told me what Alice saw. Said he wanted a member of the pack here as soon as possible. Someone he could trust, just in case you lot didn't make it in time. Someone who'd know what to do when it came to telling my dad and the pack."

"Speaking of Carlisle." Alice butted in, nodding to Rosalie's pocket. Just then the blonde girls phone began to ring and she withdrew it and answered.

"Hello?" She said, putting him of speaker phone.

"Hello Rosalie. Did you make it in time?" Said the doctor in a cautious, worried tone. I wondered if he'd been considering the possibility that I had taken his hospitality for granted and put his family in danger. In a way, that was exactly what I had done without even realizing it.

"Just." Rosalie answered. "But Mike saw too much. We've taken him to Kai to have him erase the whole thing from Mike's memory."

There was a pause and we all heard Esme in the background whisper. "Thank God," Hearing that felt like a jab to the chest.

"That's a clever idea." Carlisle finally said, the relief just as clear as the disappointment. "Is Jacob there?"

"I'm here, Doc." Jake said.

I only then thought of Jacob's father and the other elders, the other members of the pack. The treaty.

Oh shit.

"Jake, does your father know I attacked Mike?" I asked.

"You didn't tell anyone where you were going?" Carlisle asked.

"No. Just told them I was coming to meet Isabella." He answered us both. "The others will see through my memories, Sam'll be pissed but as long as he sees Mike's alive I don't think he'll take action. Dad doesn't know and let's keep it that way. If he found out you killed anyone he'd take it as an insult. He'd break the treaty. If he found out it was someone from Forks, he'd given the order to kill right now."

"Speaking of which, why did you try and kill him?" Alice asked, tilting her head. Her topaz eyes were wide and leering. "Did you seek him out after you left us at the school?"

"No, no it was an accident."

"You attacked him accidentally? You lost control?"

"You told us when we pinned you down you had control." Kate said, crossing her arms. She wore a fur coat, the lining of which enveloped her entire face.

"That's right." Tanya agreed with her sister.

I groaned loudly and let my head fall back. "It wasn't like that."

"Then why were you trying to kill him!" Alice exclaimed, throwing her hands up in the air.

"I'm sorry, alright, I didn't think it was that big a deal. I was on my way here when I spotted him. I was curious so I followed him, just to listen, to see in person someone Bella knew when she was here. One of his friends saw me before I could flee and he followed me into an alley. I would have escaped but he'd already seen more than he should have and if word got out, got to Aro, he'd know Kai lied and we'd be in danger. More danger than we already are."

"But he's a citizen of Forks! Everyone knows everyone in that town. Like Jacob said if he went missing, or turned up dead, then the treaty with the pack would be over and we'd all be forced to leave. Or worse, fight."

"Can you blame me?" I snapped, "I've lived by my rules for a _millennium!_ Answering only to Aro. If anyone else dared to even think about giving me an order, a command, I would tear them to pieces! I would burn them to ash, one limb at a time. Do you know how strange this all is? How hard it is for me to comprehend that my entire universe is fabricated? That who I am, who I've always been, is nothing but a character, a lie? You don't know how it feels to be told you don't exist. That there used to be a whole other person living your life, seeing through your eyes, experiencing existence when you did not."

"I do know!" Alice roared with a ferocity I had not seen from her. "I used to be someone else, but unlike you, I don't have the luxury of a lie to fall back on!"

"What?" I asked, confounded and completely in the dark.

Mike started to wake. Distracted by this, Alice shook her head and left it at that. I wanted to know more, but figured it wasn't the best time after all. We all moved to watch over him as he mumbled incoherently in his sleep, then he groaned loudly as he reached up to feel the back of his head and then he found the cloth. His eyes fluttered and flickered open. I assumed he saw only blurry shapes at first but after a few seconds reality sharpened and his eyes snapped open wide.

He cried out and threw himself over the arm of the sofa. He hit the ground with a thud and begun scrambling away.

"Mike, calm down, okay? It's Alice. You remember me, right? From school?" She crouched down by his side and smiled just as warmly as she had to me the first day she and the others ambushed me. Like I had come to say, Alice was a lot tougher and scarier on the inside than on the out.

"She's alive! Bella's alive! She attacked me!" He blurted out, pointing at me. The action must have moved his shoulder and he cried out in agony, fresh tears pooling in his eyes.

"Don't move. You're hurt." Edward told him.

"What are his injuries." Carlisle asked through the phone.

"Let me see." Rosalie said, passing between her brother and her sister. Mike looked terrified, but he did know these people. He was a lot less scared of them than he was of me.

"Don't touch me!" He said, but Rosalie hushed him.

"Just let me see. If you try and move you could damage it even further. No one is going to hurt you, we promise." She said. Rose fluttered her long lashes his way and as if she had cast a trance the same as Heidi's, he was lost and nodded, hanging on to her every word. Rosalie pulled down the collar of his T-shirt and inspected the bruise already forming.

"Fractured collar-bone. Not severe, but will take weeks to heal." She said aloud.

"Can you fashion a sling? And apply Ice but not directly to the skin?" The doctor suggested. Emmett went off to tear up some sheets as Tanya went to fetch Ice.

"What the fuck is going on, will somebody please just tell me what's going on?"

"Mike?" Alice said, turning Mike's chin until he faced her. "Calm down."

"And his head?" Carlisle went on and ignored them both.

Rosalie leaned Mike forward to check his head. "Not deep. He'll have a hell of a headache tomorrow though."

"She didn't bite him?" Esme asked then, her lighter voice taking Carlisle's place.

"No. I didn't bite him." I answered but Rosalie checked Mike out despite what I said.

"Do you feel a burning sensation anywhere? Mike?"

"Burning?" He exclaimed, laughing again but out of disbelief. Emmett took the ice from Tanya and begun to fold Mike's arm and shoulder into a sling. It would do little to help the collar but the ice would settle the swelling.

"I didn't bite him. He isn't turning." I snapped again.

"Turning…. You, you tried to kill me!" Mike roared as he finally took me in again. He looked at me just as disgusted as he had when he'd seen me drenched in blood from head to toe. "She's not human!" He said it in a way that made it clear he didn't think the others knew. "She's…she said she was a vampire! Then she tried to _kill me!"_

"You told him?" Emmett laughed honestly amused by that fact.

"I was planning to kill him. I didn't think it mattered."

"Wait…you're all…" Mike then crawled away from Rosalie, his attraction for her died just as quickly as it appeared. "You're all vampires, aren't you? It's why you were all so weird in school!"

"Yes, we're all vampires." I said, bored with him now. "Except Jake, he's a werewolf."

"You're not helping!" Alice screeched my way. Jake laughed, which made me laugh but the look Alice gave us both made us drop our smiles. Small but ferocious. She took Rosalie's place on the floor and tried to come across as kind hearted as she could. "Mike, really, you have nothing to worry about. Come, let me help you." Mike was in the corner now by the large window overlooking the town, he clung to the walls by his side desperately. Like a trapped mouse with nowhere else to go.

"Jaz, could you?" Alice said too softly for the human to hear.

Jasper nodded and focused on Mike. I realized Jasper's influence was calming Mike when Edward side glanced at his brother. Edward could feel it through Mike's thoughts.

Mike's breathing evened out and his heartbeat began to steady. "Should I…?" Kai said, speaking up again. Alice looked up to him and Kai beckoned to Mike then made a twirling motion with his finger by his temple. Asking if he should do what he did best.

"Go ahead." Alice said, stepping away. Kai nodded, pulled his pants a little higher before going to sit in front of the petrified boy.

"Hello Mike." Kai said almost cheerfully.

You didn't have to be an empath to know Mike was insanely jealous of Kai – and who could blame him? In this small town, Mike Newton was the boy the girls all wanted to date and the boys all wanted to be. He was moderately handsome, in a big kid kind of way. Captain of the football team, sandy blonde hair, dorky smile that somehow made the girls weak at the knees. Not to mention this was a small town, so there wasn't a variety of boys to pick from anyway. But compared to the likes of Kai, hell, compared to the likes of anyone in this room, Mike Newton was underwhelmingly ordinary.

Mike looked at Kai the way most men – straight men, specifically – looked at Kai, with an envy that quickly burned into hatred. Mike may have been a human but he was not stupid, he could tell from the way I stood minutes before with my arm resting on Kai's shoulder that I cared for him. It took for one glance at Kai looking up at me with those mesmerizingly bright eyes to see he felt deeply for me in return.

How blind Mike was to the true war of emotion raging back and forth between us.

"My name is Mordecai. You can call me Kai."

"You're one of them!" Mike exclaimed, considering Kai's eyes which were just as red as my own.

"I am but as Rosalie promised, you have nothing to fear. It's all going to be okay. I want you to listen to me carefully, Mike. I need for you to take deep breaths and listen to what I have to say, alright?" Mike looked hesitant and unbelieving of a word Kai said but, with all us staring at him, he obeyed and took in deep breaths. I almost laughed. Kai almost sounded professional.

"Good. Now, you know Isabella, correct?" Kai asked carefully and Mike nodded, "She was your friend from school?" Mike nodded again. "But she died, didn't she?" Mike then shook his head.

"She's right there, I know it's her. The same her. She told me."

"She was wrong." Kai said, staring deeply into Mike's eyes. "She didn't say that." Mike looked away from Kai for a split second but it was all Kai needed. Before Mike could turn back to him Kai had placed two fingertips against Mike's temple and was taking over his fragile human mind. It was an amazing thing to witness. It always had been.

"I know what you think you saw but you are going to forget that you saw Isabella or any of us tonight. When you wake tomorrow, you will forget she is alive, she is a vampire and that vampires – and werewolves – exist at all." He added the last part simply because of what I had said. "Do you understand?"

Mike nodded expressionlessly. "Yes."

"You did chase a woman into an alleyway believing it to be Bella but upon a closer inspection realized you were wrong. She was someone else entirely." Kai said, his voice almost hung in the air and in our memories too. As if the words were affecting us all somehow. I knew to me it was just his voice and how compelling he was just as a person and not as a Gifted immortal.

"His injuries." Carlisle spoke softly through the speaker phone. "Include a reason for those."

"You got drunk, didn't you?" Kai asked Mike and the boy nodded. "You tripped and hit your head, sprained your ankle too." Mike nodded. "You also tripped on your way back to your friends, landed on your shoulder. Did some damage, didn't you?"

Again, completely submissive to Kai, Mike nodded. "Yes."

"When you are dropped off at home, you are going to go to bed and wake up feeling hungover. From that moment, all of what I have said will be forgotten. You will shrug off your concussion as a result of drinking too much and when you see your shoulder, you will seek medical attention."

Kai then went on to add in some further details, little things to tie up loose ends. I moved away from them and leaned against the window with Jacob at my side.

"You messed up big, huh?" Jake asked, nudging my shoulder. I rolled my eyes and leant back against the wall, resting my foot against it to keep me upright. I ran my hands through my hair and brushed it behind my ears.

"I guess." I answered, biting my lip and shrugging. Though Mike was totally under Kai's control, he was still blubbering.

"God," Jake muttered into my shoulder, "Three years later and he's still a marshmallow." I laughed without needing to know the memory he was referencing. "But I'm glad you didn't kill him. I'd hate to have to kill you." He was only half joking, he nudged me again.

"I'd hate to have to kill you." I replied, again only half joking. We acknowledged that fact for a moment in just the way we looked at one another. But we both also understood that we both meant it when we said we wouldn't want to fight.

He was right. I had messed up and if it weren't for the Cullen's, Denali's, Jake and Kai…I would be on my own again.

* * *

I stood at the windows and peered through, watching as Emmett helped Mike into the back of the Impala which he was borrowing. Then I watched as the taillights vanished when he turned down the road. I let out a sigh and folded my arms.

They were all staring at me.

"I said I was sorry. All I can do is thank you for stopping me. I was blind to what I was doing. Thinking unclearly on the blood high." It was a bad excuse but my only one.

"That's alright," Edward answered when no one else did. I could see from the way Alice was standing, her posture, her body language, facial expressions…. she was pissed as hell.

"Can we go now?" She asked Jasper and her mate nodded.

One by one they said small goodbyes and left the apartment. Edward was the only one in the room. I beckoned for him to stay with my finger so the others wouldn't overhear. When they were out of the building, I asked the question that had been bugging me for the past hour.

"What did Alice mean earlier? When she said she knows how it feels to not know who you are?"

Edward looked down and folded his arms. "When Alice was transformed, she woke with no recollection of who she used to be. She didn't know her name, where she came from, not even who turned her or what she had become. She had to figure it all out on her own and it was a hard time for her. But in the end, she ended up happier than she would have been if she did remember."

"I see." I said, not sure what to say.

"She's angry with you but it'll pass. She thinks you're using this discovery now as an excuse to do what you want still. To act like the same Isabella of the Volturi you have always been in your head even though you know it's wrong. And that kind of mentality possibly put us all in danger. Give her a few days. She'll calm down. Alice can never stay mad at someone for very long."

Edward closed the door behind him and followed the others out, but not before I thanked him for what he had done. My mind was clear but my conscience was not. I knew that this stunt would give them all a reason to be even more weary around me than they already were. It would make them believe that I did not appreciate their help, their safety and their shelter. It pained me to imagine Carlisle and Rose, the others, all believing that I took them for granted and would risk their lives simply to take that of another.

I knew what I needed to do. I knew I needed to prove that I was just as thankful and willing to show it, and the way how had been clear in Edward's eyes.

"What are you thinking?" Kai asked, appearing behind me to wrap his arms around my waist. It wasn't a sexual gesture, not entirely romantic either. He could simply tell I was sorting through some troublesome thoughts and wanted to hold me to make me feel…not alone.

"I'm thinking that I need to show the Cullen's and the Denali's, and Jake and his Dad, that I am listening to them. That I care about them, even a little."

"That's a big step for you. How're you going to do that?"

I let out a sigh as I said the words I knew I would come to rue. "I'm going to become a vegetarian."

* * *

Asher's Note:

Hello Readers! Chapter Twenty-Two is here! Like usual, I am sorry it took a while to update but I hope this long chapter is enough of a sorry anyway. Though I always say that I update when I can and I do not have a set uploading schedule, I do always feel guilting when it goes on for a month without a chapter. I have next week off work so I hope to get a lot of writing done then. I'll mostly be working on the third chapter of the prequel to this story called 'Forgetting a love Since Found.' But I hope to get to work on chapter twenty-three of this story too.

So, in this chapter quite a lot happens. It all takes place in the span of a couple hours in the early morning. Isabella left the others and returned to just outside Port Angeles to hunt, which she did. She killed two unsuspecting drivers, then a couple by the pier, and then she ran into Mike! She tried to kill him but was stopped and then the others took Mike back to Isabella's place to have Kai erase these memories. It had been a while since we had any kind of killing or major drama in this story so I thought this chapter was a little of that until we get into the BIG stuff later.

I hope you will enjoy and I hope to hear your thoughts on this chapter!

P.S. I know Isabella remaining a human-blood drinking vampire is important to a lot of readers. I prefer her to drink human blood. But for the story's plot line, she will become a vegetarian vampire for a short while. It won't be permanent but the reason why was hopefully explained in the last paragraphs. Thanks!

* * *

Responding to your reviews:

Traceybuie: Thanks for your review! I feel bad that you thought she was going to feed the way she wants – which in a way, she kind of did? – but for a while she will choose to feed from animals. It's just to show the Cullen's she cares for their lives as they do for her despite knowing that she is a cruel and sometimes evil being. In time, she will drink human blood again. The tours might be a waste of time, like you said, but she has regained one or two memories. The Rabbit in the garage was only one of them. More tours will perhaps come and more memories will surface also. You are right. It will only happen when she wants it to happen fully

Hopestreet: Thank you for reviewing! I agree. Edward has lost a lot and I can say now that this story is just about how much Edward will change just as well as it is about Bella's change. Only Edward's development is more towards the end of the story. There is an important chapter coming up in a few chapters to come that I think shows the start of his change perfectly. I agree with you on your last point also. Like they agreed in an earlier chapter, they were not going to get rid of Isabella but simply try and help her remember. Who she will become and what she will chose to do with her life and her feelings had yet to be determined.

Guest #1: She did promise Billy but Isabella cares little for anyone's rules but her own, as seen in this chapter. But, she will also be showing Billy and the pack she is willing to compromise in becoming a vegetarian for a while. Like Isabella said in this chapter when she sees Hayden's red hair, Victoria has yet to return and Isabella has more important things to worry about. Victoria will return however and in a HUGE way. As for the army…. you will have to wait and see.

Guest 2#: I honestly was so surprised by your review. You predicted a lot of this chapter. I had the plot points of this chapter written down a long time ago. I had to check I hadn't posted them anywhere because you guessed a lot of this chapter so accurately. Isabella did run into someone from her past. Mike Newton just like you suggested. She also seduced her prey by acting defenceless and needing help. What a weird coincidence, huh? Thanks for reviewing! :]

~Asher~


	23. Chapter 23

~ Isabella's POV ~

* * *

Kai's hand landed on my thigh and gave it a reassuring squeeze. "Are you ready to go in?" He asked me. I didn't answer him straight away, I needed a second to think about it. I faced back to the front of the vehicle and through the frosted over windshield I could see the Cullen home at the end of the road. It looked no different than it had the first time I had seen it but the tall windows were fogged over with light and warmth from within. Winter was descending upon us quickly – to say it was only the 3rd of October – and this meant the grass on the lawn looked almost as grey as the clouds rumbling in the sky above. We did not get cold but we could feel warmth and I urged to be besides the fire but I had yet gathered the courage I needed to go in and do what I needed to do.

"Just a moment." I answered softly.

"You said that a moment ago. And the moment before that." My gaze snapped in his direction, annoyed he'd dared to voice what we both knew to be true. "But hey! If you need another moment, love, we'll wait another moment." He leaned back into his seat, one hand still resting on the steering wheel.

One of those moments he spoke of was wasted on my considering telling Kai to turn the Impala around and just drive. To drive until nightfall and then keep driving until Forks was far behind us. In that scenario, the Cullen's would not have to deal with me anymore, nor would they be in the life-threatening danger housing me would bring them. I could easily have worked on mastering my shield on the other side of the planet. What made me realize that all was an impossibility was the realization I did not _want_ to leave. Not yet. Not when I had a chance to make things right.

Kai waited. After a minute, I shrugged and let out a heavy breath.

"I'm sorry, I'm trapped in my own head." I could hear them in there, the Cullen's and the Denali's. Jacob too, I guessed from the peculiar heartbeat.

"Hey, relax. I get it. You're not overexaggerating. What you're about to do is a huge thing for you, it's a step in the right direction. You're proving to them that you care about their safety as much as they care about yours."

"I know," I said, "Alice has probably already seen me make this decision. Edward's probably seen it through your thoughts. Not to mention they're all listening in on what we're saying." The quiet in the house was broken by the shuffling of footsteps and mindless chitter chatter; embarrassed at being caught out.

"So? That doesn't count. It doesn't matter. It matters when you go in there and have a conversation face to face, not when they listen in from an outside perspective on our conversation."

He was right, of course but it did little to settle my nerves. I had no choice now but to face them and apologise for my actions – and this time mean it. I let out another heavy breath then pulled a beanie hat out of my coat pocket and pulled it over my head, the same hat I'd bribed from some British girl the night I boarded my flight back to Seattle, along with a camouflage jacket I hadn't seen since taking it off. I was sure Alice had swiped and burned it.

Oh, Alice. Her forgiveness would be the most difficult to earn back. Her sudden switch in attitude towards me was demoralizing and made me feel as if I were once again the monster I had been proud to have been prior to the discovery of Aro's betrayal. She had trusted me first. She had given me trust and friendship when I had still been plotting to kill her. I almost had, once. To know I had let her down and my actions had led her to believe I did not appreciate the support and aid her family had offered me in my time of need made me feel ashamed and I did not like this feeling.

I peered sideways at Kai to find him smiling down at me. It wasn't his flashy smile, it was his soft one. The one I preferred but saw less often than I would have liked too. An approving smile. I studied his face for another full moment, or more specifically his eyes and the colour of them. His eyes were red too, of course, but they were not bright or violent. They did not remind one of blood or fire or any other horrible thing. They reminded me of wood, funnily enough. The colour of mahogany. When he had not fed recently his eyes were this colour and could easily pass for brown; the reddish hue only visible to those who could see what he really was.

I leaned forward and kissed him. It wasn't planned and it certainly did not mean I forgave him for what he did to me but I understood the reasoning behind his actions just as I hoped the Cullen's would do mine. It was careful and quick, our lips barely brushed together before I leaned away.

"Let's go." I told him, opening the door I stepped out into the cold.

Kai had a moment of his own alone in the car – only a few seconds but I knew he was mulling over what that kiss meant. I didn't regret it because it felt right and it felt wonderful. Though I lived with him and worked alongside him for hours on end each passing day, I still missed him. I missed his hands on my body and the taste of his lips on my own. His laughter hanging in the air after one of his crude – but admittingly witty and amusing – jokes. I hoped to one day have that again but now was not the time.

When he left the car and met my side, I locked the doors then stuffed the keys into my pocket. I could hear them talking in the house, mostly about the weather or the Pack. None one mentioned our arrival or approach. A heavy gust of wind blew into us as we ascended the porch steps; I had to cling to the hat as it attempted to snatch it from me. An annoyance, this weather. I was used to the scorch of summer, despite my inability to step outside and truly enjoy it.

I reached for the door handle, knowing the Cullen's and I were still on friendly terms enough for us to invite ourselves in, but before I could I felt Kai's fingers interlock with my own. "Isabella, wait." He urged.

"What is it?" I demanded, sounding sterner than intended. I listened carefully for any sign of danger but heard no charging footsteps or cries of war. Nothing out of the ordinary. I only realized there was no danger when he rubbed his thumb against the back of my hand in slow circles.

"I don't doubt your strength or your self-control. You've always been strong willed, even as a human but before you walk through those doors I need to know you understand that you cannot turn back from this, my love?" I heard what he said, and went to speak but he continued before I could get out a word. "No matter how difficult it gets, how dangerous the next few weeks become...you need to be there for them." I knew he meant the others indoors, who had stopped all conversation to listen in unison to the one we were having. "They are all putting their lives at risk to ensure your safety. When the time comes can you promise them you will do the same?"

I swallowed and glanced over my shoulder at the door and the promise that lay beyond. I had lost my old family. My friends, my father. I had lost the freedom I had taken for granted. I knew what I needed to do and I knew why. These people were not my family, not yet, but Kai was and he too was in danger because of me. I had to make that promise for him. For us both.

"Yes." I told him, sounding surer in myself than I had in a long time.

There it was again. That approving smile. For a moment, I thought he was going to kiss me but instead he leaned forward to open the door and beckon me in.

The warmth within was bliss. The Cullen's must have felt the same as I because they had clearly had a fire burning for hours. It felt hot against my cheek and tickled my lips. I smiled unknowingly until Kai frowned down at me, his furrowed brows out of place with his smile. "What are you smiling about?" He asked me quietly, taking off his own coat and then moving to take off mine.

"I miss the sun." I said, forcing my lips to shut. He didn't respond but I could imagine the look. I pulled off the hat and handed it to him to shove into my coat pocket, then I shook out my hair and ran my fingers through it. I had washed it again that morning – it still smelt of blood – which meant that in this heat it began to feel frizzy. I combed it out, distracting myself from Esme and Carlisle whom made their way down the curving staircase. They looked picturesque. Esme wore a sage green georgette blouse, a black pencil skirt and emerald pumps to match. Carlisle wore a baby blue sweater and I imagined the colour to perfectly match his human eyes. He always came across as one of those blonde-haired, blue-eyed beauties. He too looked to have been out of the house earlier, as he still had a grey scarf wrapped comfortably around his neck.

"Isabella, Kai." Carlisle greeted us.

"I hope you don't mind us dropping in unannounced." Kai said before I could, flashing them his…well his flashy smile.

"Not at all." Esme chimed in. "To what do we owe the pleasure?" She asked with a false smile.

An angry part of me I tried so valiantly to suppress wanted to say they already knew why we were here and pretending to know otherwise was stupid. It was true, but I knew better now than to say aloud what I thought. A horrible way to live, having to watch what you say but it was the polite way to live. Instead, I said.

"I'd like a word." Then addressed the house as a whole by adding. "With all of you." I wondered what they were all doing, all twelve of them. More than likely just waiting out of sight, listening in.

"We understand." Esme told me, "Let's sit." Placing her palm against the small of my back she led me and Kai into the sitting room.

When we walked through the archway we were met with another blast of heat from the fireplace. The coals burned away and I could taste them in the air, along with candle wax scented with lavender and rosemary. The living room, much like the rest of the house, I assumed – was lit by only by table lamps and candles. It reminded me of my chambers back home. The electricity had worked in my quarters but I much preferred to read by firelight. There was just something about being besides an open flame – especially when it was terrible weather – that relaxed the body and calmed the mind. I wanted to drop down in front of it, to sprawl out across the lavish fur rug and have Kai crawl besides me.

Or above me, dealer's choice.

It started raining just as Kai and I sat down on the two-seater. Knowing my want to be warm, he allowed me to sit closer to the fire. It was quiet while we waited, the only sound was that of the rain tapping repeatedly against the panes of glass, the sizzling of the coals as they broke apart and split, soft footsteps approaching from every corner of the house, and Jacob's peculiar heartbeat getting closer.

Rose gave me a weary smile when she entered the room, clinging onto Emmett's arm. A smile to say _Good Luck._ I returned the favour with a smile of my own but not a very convincing one I was sure. Tanya and Irina sat on the couch, Kate stood by the window and looked out at the rain. Carmen and Eleazar stood opposite Carlisle and Esme. The two sets of 'parents.'

Edward came in wearing, surprisingly, a white T-shirt and blue jeans. I'd never seen him looks so comfortable, at home. I suppose that shouldn't have surprised me considering this _was_ his home but this…it felt as if he was opening up to me somehow. Showing me a vulnerability? – I couldn't make sense of it. I tried not to focus on him, something in the crooked grin he flashed gave me the idea he was not the one I needed to worry about.

Jasper and Alice came through next. Jasper had his eyes on Alice and Alice had her eyes on me. She did not look happy. Alice was dressed head to toe in black which I think came as a shock to us all. Of course, she still had to have some colour: her nails were painted pink. She was wearing what I assumed to be a dress but on second inspection realized it to be one of Jasper's sweaters. Beneath it she wore leggings with a pair of fluffy black socks. Her hair had not been styled today and although she did not sleep, the strange angles pointing in every direction gave the illusion of bedhead.

I wondered if she wore black because of me. As a way of silently showing her disappointment somehow. I did not like it.

They all came in at once but Jacob was the last one in the room and he crossed over to hug me immediately. I stood to meet him, partly guilty I had only accepted the hug because of his scorch. Jacob's skin burned when we touched, and our hug lasted longer than any other before it. The heat he gave off soon burned like an open flame and I had to pull away. I missed the sun. Not fire.

Everyone dressed fairly casual: sweaters, jeans, thin shirts and cosy cardigans. The Denali's wore their famous furs just as Jacob still wore his torn and tattered denim shorts. At least he wore a tight-fitting T-shirt to at least given the impression he was cold.

I was wrong before. Jacob was not the last one in the room as Astrid strolled through a moment later, greeting Kai and I with a meow. She leapt up to sit atop my lap.

"Does this meeting include me?" Jacob shrugged, plopping down in-between Tanya and Irina on the couch and earning displeased looks in return. Irina shot to her feet, teeth barred but instead of starting something she stormed to the farthest end of the room to the lounge chair in the corner. Esme took her spot next to Jacob.

"Sure. But what are you doing here, Jake? I didn't take you for the kind to spend their free time with vampires?"

"I don't." He sounded sure of that. "I've been back and forth all morning, passing messages to the Doc-" He nodded to Carlisle. "-From Sam. The Pack had a meeting this morning, about what happened last night."

"And?" I tried to keep my voice steady. I hadn't considered the possibility that it was too late to salvage this friendship. I might already have doomed the Cullen's.

"And," Jacob dragged. "We've agreed not to tell the Elders. Some of the others want too but since you didn't hunt in Forks, or kill anyone from Forks, and kept within the area you set with the Doc, there's no point telling the Elders and starting a war we don't need. You did kill when my dad said not too but-"

"I know. Actually, that is partly why I am here. I'll get there, but I'm here because I-"

"Because you want to apologise." Alice cut in, her usually belle like voice sounding sharp. "Aren't you?" She growled almost accusingly. I realized she'd asked a question but the way in which she'd spoken and her attire had distracted me. I nodded to her, confirming it.

"Yes, Alice, I'm here to apologise." It was an effort to not sound as rude as I would have liked.

"Well you're wasting your time." She sang. It bewildered me how she could tell me off and sound so harmonial at the same time.

"Let the woman talk, Alice." Edward shot back at her, squinting his eyes and shaking his head as if he couldn't quite understand the thoughts racing through her mind. In the amber light of the fire, Edward's eyes and hair both shone tawny brown and bronze. It seemed I wasn't the only one surprised by Edward's defensiveness. Jake made no effort to hide his confusion. In fact, he voiced it.

"Just a week ago you were the one yelling at her for daring to look at anyone the wrong way and now you're defending her trying to kill someone?"

"Thanks, Jake." I muttered.

"No, I'm not saying you're in the wrong. Well, you kind of are…but that's not the point. What I mean is-" He diverted the conversation back to Edward. "Why're you so different around her now?"

A blunt question. We'd all seen how he'd changed in such a short time and in truth, I think we all wondered why. I just hadn't cared enough to ask him myself. Edward looked from Jacob to his father, then around the room at the others. He just shrugged.

"I realized how unfair I was being." Was all he said, before looking at no one.

"You've already seen this going down, right?" I asked, facing Alice again. "Why are you still being so hostile towards me if you know what I'm about to do?"

"Because I haven't seen it yet." She snapped back. "You haven't decided what you're going to say exactly and even if I had seen it, it wouldn't have mattered. I'd want to hear it from your mouth."

"And then tell me I'm wasting my time?"

"Yes."

"Alice!" Esme cried quietly. "Will you just listen to the girl?" She played the part of the parent well. I wondered if she'd ever had any children as a human, she must have done to be so loving and maternal as an Immortal. Alice crossed her arms and took her usual spot atop the piano, sitting with her legs folded and a frown on her young face.

She was right. I hadn't decided what to say yet. I knew what needed to be said but I hadn't thought about how I would say it? I decided that I needed to just speak from the heart – as cringe-worthy as that sounded.

I thought about it and then just spoke and the words poured out of me like magic.

"I'd appreciate it if you allowed me to say what I have to say. To explain in thorough detail why I have done what I have and why I am the way I am?" I looked from face to face, no one objected so I continued. "I don't know how to do this very well. Apologising, that is. I can count on one hand the amount of times I have had to do it and still have fingers to spare. But I must do this, not only because of the guilt that ridicules me but because it has become apparent to me as to why I was in the wrong. Yesterday when I attacked Mike I only thought of the danger I was placing Kai and myself in should he be allowed to live, but today I see that it never occurred to me the danger I was putting your family in by killing him. I wish I could blame my actions on the thrill of the hunt but I cannot. I have no excuse other than stupidity and selfishness. But in my defence, I am going through a tremendous change and I am struggling to remain sane."

"If you were ever sane in the first place." Jacob sniggered, lifting the mood and forcing a smile out of me at a time I thought impossible.

"Touché, wolf." I said back, "Nevertheless, I'm having a difficult time."

* * *

The Cullen's and Denali's allowed me to tell them my story and gratefully did not interrupt much at all; save for Jacob's snide comment here and there. I told them all how when I first accepted the truth, I was in Volterra, in my chambers and I destroyed anything I could get my hands on. Those rooms were filled with things I had owned for centuries, items I cherished and loved from across the globe. My first ever gown gifted to me by Aro the same year he turned me. An amulet of blood rubies Kai gave me the first time we made love.

You can imagine Edward's face when hearing that.

Other priceless souvenirs and memorabilia of my thousand years of life. I smashed, crushed and burned everything until I could do nothing but lay in the destruction I had caused and weep. How in a split second, everything I had ever known changed. Turned against me. Friends became enemies, my home turned into a prison. My lover became the one who had cursed me. My father became my tormentor. I was lost. Alone for the first time in so long. I had no idea what to do. What could I do? I had no option but to run, to get to safety and then figure it out from there. I told them how I spent a short while in England, Ireland and other places in Europe. I wondered if returning to the states was worth the risk. I wanted answers but I feared the truth as greatly as I desired it. It surprised even Kai when I mentioned how I contemplated running. I would go to the amazon or the dessert, camp out in the Himalaya's or settle down on an uninhabited island in the middle of the ocean. Somewhere my scent could fade and I would be free. The possibility of a life without me saddened him, it saddened me too. When Rosalie asked why I didn't do just that, I told them I could not bring myself to do it. I found myself preparing to come back to them within the week. I deserved to know the truth, that much I believed wholeheartedly but there was more to it than that. It…it felt like the right thing to do.

"And it was." Edward clarified with a nod of his head when I said those words. That was it, he said nothing else nor did any of the others.

"It was." I agreed. Believing the statement to be true.

I told them all how in the past, when I looked in the mirror, I saw strength. I saw beauty. I saw power. I could see the being I had always wanted to be. Someone to be looked upon in awe. Someone to be looked upon in fear. What I had not seen in a long time was a shred of humanity but these past weeks with them all had granted me that. Life was so much easier when you needn't feel guilt or anger or sorrow. When you could shut off the unfavourable emotions and live only on the good ones; the thing is being able to feel emotion comes with advantages as well as disadvantages. How I was learning, learning to feel and how I tried so hard, despite the risk to my very existence.

I was brutally honest with them and told them how until the night before I had yet to decide if I would go through with it or not; I ensured they didn't get me wrong as I was glad to be working with Kai but the truth of the matter was that no one can predict the outcome of this task? What would happen to us all if I were incapable of controlling my ability in time? For all we knew I would accomplish it only to be erased and replaced the same way Bella was. But now, though I still feared what is to come, I was willing to take the risk. I wanted to know my true self before deciding who I am to be next but to do that I must learn to live by their laws, follow their rules, respect the lives of the humans around me. There was a time when I bowed to only my masters. I lived in a world in which my word was law and God help anyone who dared to disrespect me.

When I told them this I could see in their eyes they were beginning to understand how difficult it was for me to be bossed around by them.

I wrung my fingers as I paced back and forth before them, taking in deep, useless breaths – they did nothing to calm me but the fresh, warm air filling my lungs gave me a sense of clarity. As if the intake of air blew away the worry in my gut. "It is – It is hard for me to adjust to everything." I said after a few seconds of silence. "Suddenly I am surrounded by strangers who know my face. Whom expect me to be the opposite of who I am and who I always have been- then I am shunned for not becoming that person immediately." I exclaimed with fake laughter. "Even my _name_! Something as simple as a name. Everyone here knew me as Bella when I had always been Isabella. To prove to you my words are true, that I am eternally grateful for your help, I am willing to abstain from human blood and follow your way of life."

A few eyes widened, surprised and somewhat amused expressions crossed some of their faces. I tried not to cling to image of them. My instincts told me to get angry that they dared to find what I had said humorous. But I closed my eyes for a second, took in another breath, and let it go. Having Astrid on my lap kept me calm. I distracted myself with stroking her behind the ears instead of making fists and biting my nails.

"It will be difficult, this is true, and the change in my diet could potentially make it more difficult to master my shield but I would rather risk that than continue killing the way I have. It is all I have ever known but I am trying. I am learning. I don't know how to be anything but the monster he made me. But I am trying and I hope you can forgive me for my blatant lack of respect for you, your family and your home. I'm sorry."

I waited for someone to speak, to say something. No one did. I looked to Kai for reassurance that my tale had been as honest and as true as I had thought but he wasn't looking at me. He was looking at the others, apparently waiting for someone to say something. This wasn't good.

"I'm done." I clarified. "This is where someone else starts to talk?"

"I forgive you." To my surprise, it was Jacob who spoke. His words captured the attention of everyone. He stood up from the couch and circled the room back to me. "I mean, I can't talk for the others and I guess my forgiveness doesn't matter. I mean, I wasn't the one in trouble because of what you did but, I forgive you for it. I can't blame you for slipping up considering all you been through."

"I'm going to regret saying this," Interrupted Rose, "But Jacob's right."

Jacob's eyebrows lifted dramatically, clearly as taken back by the statement as I. Rose rolled her eyes and sneered his way. "Wipe that look off your face before I do it for you." She growled. Jake laughed a little to himself and shrugged, as if to say _can you blame me?_ Ignoring him, Rose focused on me. She left Emmett's side to take my hands in her own. "You've been around Aro for what? A thousand years, nearly? I mean – in your head. But those years still count. I forgive you." I needn't thank her with words, instead I accepted the hug she instigated. I held her tight, as she did me and it helped to lift the threatening weight from my shoulders.

"I want to thank you for doing this, Isabella." Carlisle said, approaching but not stepping any further than Rose. "When we heard about what happened last night-" He looked to Esme at his side. "-I considered asking you to leave Forks. To master your ability elsewhere and then have Kai return your memories if it was still what you wanted. You didn't need us for anything." I had thought the same thing earlier in the car and wondered why he hadn't asked me to leave. If I had been in his shoes and my family were at risk, I would have not asked but demanded it. "But…I am glad I didn't."

Esme, taking this as a good sign, willed herself to smile as she pulled me into a hug. "We forgive you, of course." She told me softly into my ear, rubbing my back in a way that reminded me of Kai.

"Me too," Emmett said, shrugging and leaning back against the wall. "I mean, I wasn't that angry in the first place but…" Another shrug. I smiled.

"Thank you, Emmett."

"What you did was stupid." My smile dropped when I met Carmen's eyes. She was not smiling, she looked angry. Eleazar was looking at his wife from behind with a question in his eyes. There was caution there too. "This family has put their lives on the line for you, Isabella." I could tell she was angry just from the way her accent grew thicker. "And you repay them by almost destroying their lives here."

"I know," I said, finding it difficult to remain calm. It took all I had not to ball my hands into fists. I needed them to think I had control of my anger. Better yet, I needed to get control of my anger. "I know and I am apologising. I made a mistake. It won't happen again." Carmen did not look as if she believed me, but she looked up to meet the eyes of her mate and in them saw his opinions on this. As could I. His topaz eyes were soft and forgiving.

"We understand everything." Eleazar said when Carmen failed to find any words. "The fact that you realize the error of your ways proves you are not the same girl we met that day in the woods. You have come far but still have far to go. We will help you along the way."

"This is madness." Irina whispered from the corner. She wasn't looking at us but out of the window at the heavy downpour of rain. At the great oak trees that lashed about in the brutal storm that had hit this small town in the short time it took for me to tell my story. She did not seem angry, just lost. "I told you the day we questioned her that she would only bring death to us all."

"You said she would bring the Volturi." Tanya countered.

"She may not be with them but she is the reason they will come. She is nothing but danger to us all.

"I'm a danger to everyone I meet. Don't take it personally." I snarled, dropping back down into my spot besides Kai and the fire. I could say no more. Could argue no more. I had said my piece. Kai squeezed my thigh again, smiling. He conveyed in his eyes what I had just been thinking. There is nothing more I can say to win them over.

"Still, we stand beside her as we do this family." Kate said to her sourpuss of a sister. Irina did not reply. When I was sure she wasn't about to yell back or make a stupid move, I turned my attention to the two who had yet to speak. Jasper and Alice.

"And you both?"

Jasper looked only to Alice, remaining silent until his mate had her say. She did not look as furious as she had done before, but she refused to meet my eye. I wondered if Jasper was impacting her mood – I felt no change but perhaps he had forgiven me and was using his ability to sway the decision of his less forgiving mate. But then I realized something. That possibility was incredibly low. That was the kind of manipulation a member of the Volturi would use against one another. It was not what lovers did to one another. They respected one another as equals and stood by them unconditionally.

I spared a look at Kai and squeezed his hand.

"I'm angry. I'm angry with you, I'm angry with myself." Alice said, her voice breaking. "I was thrilled when you showed up alive. After all the heartbreak and the pain your death caused, I thought that finally we could be happy again. Be a family again. My sister returned to us. I was happy to have you back – well, some version of you. But I had to be careful. I could see how angry you were whenever you were talked to as if you were Bella. So, I went out of my way to treat you as your own person. I respected that you weren't her. I called you Isabella, I didn't judge your diet of human blood, I bonded with you! But the only reason I could do any of that was because I was under the impression that you wanted to change! To find a part of yourself you didn't know you'd lost."

"And I do, Alice!" I exclaimed, bouncing back to my feet and throwing my hands in the air. Astrid leapt from my lap with a cry then hid beneath Carmen's feet, hissing my way for startling her.

"Really? Because last night you convinced me otherwise. You said it yourself, you weren't sure if you'd actually go through with it!"

"I said I was sorry! And I mean it! What more can I do?"

"You can leave me alone." After a second, she hopped off the piano and flew across the room in a blur of smudged black.

"Alice!" I shrilled, flying in front of her. She stopped barely an inch away. "I'm not leaving us this way. You're my friend. Listen to me," I said softer now. "I want to be that person again. The girl you talked about. Or at least remember what it was like being her! I don't want to be the way I used to be: heartless, emotionless, evil! I want to change. I care about you and your family and I am willing to do anything to prove it. I messed up. I made a mistake but I promise it won't happen again."

I had a strange opinion on promise. My father had used them, as had Kai but I couldn't recall a time I had ever vowed something to someone in this way. It felt strange, risky. As if I had agreed to bind my soul to theirs, and in a way, I had done that. Not literally but with words. These people could put their trust in one another based solely on their given word. It seemed ridiculous and foolish, but to the Cullen's a promise meant something. If giving my word was required for them to trust me, then so be it. I would not fail them again.

There was a long, agonizing pause of silence. No one dared to speak until Alice and I had finished our rant to one another. I did not like to wait. I was not a very patient person, but I knew Alice had to be the one to speak.

"I'm sorry for what you're going through, I get that it's hard." She said, "I personally understand it but that does not mean I forgive you for putting my family at risk. I'll forgive you when you can prove to me that this isn't just a lie, a ruse to trick us into letting you stay only for you to save your own ass when the Volturi come." Her features hardened. "And they will come."

"Fine. You want commitment? I'll show you commitment. You don't have to forgive me until then but I also promise this, Alice Cullen, I'm going to prove you wrong."

* * *

It was only two days before Kai and I returned to the Cullen house though this time feeling more welcome and at home than ever before. In truth, there had be no real reason for visiting other than my wanting too; I'd needed a change of scenery from the white, chipped painted walls of the loft we'd spent the past forty-eight hours secluded in, but I also wanted to familiarize myself with this ancient building. I wanted to be able to walk its halls and relax in its rooms comfortably, as if it were my own.

Carlisle and Esme hadn't minded when I invited myself over with Kai to work on my shield there. In fact, Esme sounded pleased I could lose myself around them considering recent events. Kai hadn't been so inclined – he preferred the loft where we were alone and he could wear no clothing freely – and let me tell you that was a bittersweet sight. But I'd persisted and he caved only when I teased the possibility of losing an item of my clothing or two upon returning home also.

It was cruel of me to tease him such but there was no malice behind it. It was all good fun between ex – and possibly future – lovers.

I also believed Kai was proud of me, and he ought to have been. I was proud of myself. Upon leaving the Cullen home on the morning of the 3rd, we'd done nothing but return to the apartment and work tirelessly against my shield non-stop. With a newfound sense of motivation and determination, I'd managed a breakthrough. With the aid of fresh human blood coursing through my veins and sharpening my mind, I'd been able to successfully expand my shield.

Only an inch or two farther than the last breakthrough. But still, it was progress.

I'd only had nine hours to myself in those two days, nine hours in which I could shower, change, read, shop, or explore the boring streets of Port Angeles. I'd opted for spending a day in Seattle. I mean, it was no New York or London but at least it had the space needle which in all my years I'd never visited. Well, Kai had never given me memory of such a visit. But I knew Aro would have men in Seattle, keeping an eye out for my return. I was sure they'd not come to Forks only because of the spell Kai had cast. The guards stationed in Seattle were under the impression that I was still in the Middle-East somewhere.

It irked me. We only had two weeks. _Two weeks!_ Lest than, give or take a day or two before Kai's compulsion fell apart and reality would set in for those Guards. Two weeks before we had to leave this place, and just when I was beginning to – no, not like it – tolerate it. This deadline was an added pressure but I think I needed it. As Kai had told me, it wasn't only my life my mastering my shield depended on now.

Hence the yelling that unfolded that Day at the Cullen Home.

"If you tell me to push one more time, I'm going to show you what childbirth feels like." I told Jake, joking only a little. He and Kai laughed aloud and Rose, lounging on the edge of the couch opposite the one I was perched on, cracked a smile for the first time that day.

"I'd like to see that." She beamed.

"As would I." Said Kai, leaning back on the dining chair he'd brought in from the kitchen. He'd brought it so he could sit directly in front of me, face to face just as we did at the loft. So he could look into my eyes as he instructed me through the painstakingly annoying efforts of lowering my shield. He'd been instructing me to 'Push!" With all sincerity when I'd managed to sink my figurative claws into the walls of my mind and heave.

Jacob, who was sat on the same couch as I, had shot up and, with all the excitement of a child, screamed 'Push! Isabella! Push! You can do it! Breathe! Deep breaths, in and out, in and out. _Hee, hee, hoo. Hee, hee, hoo!_ " As if I were acting out childbirth and he was the supporting father there to cheer me on.

Even I had to admit it was funny and though we had no time for it, the joke had lightened the weight of the room.

"I have an idea." Kai mused as he eyed up…Jacob?

"What idea?" Jake asked, the corner of his smile dipping. Kai lunged.

Minutes later we were the ones rocking on our backs, laughing almost uncontrollably. The sensation was not as familiar to me as it had been in the past and it was most certainly a welcome surprise. Rose had leapt onto my couch and the two of us knelt by one another, howling into one another as Jacob pranced back and forth around us. Kai just leaned his chair on the back legs, crossed his arms and admired his handy work.

Kai had compelled Jacob to act an imbecile of himself and could not stop doing so until Kai broke the compulsion off or until I broke it for him by shielding Jacob. As you can imagine, I hadn't even attempted to yet. This was far more amusing. Jacob hopped back and forth, flaying his arms out in the air, rolling his bare stomach like a badly trained belly-dancer. He did not look pleased, he looked furious and had been yelling, demanding Kai to stop or else.

He hadn't been able to finish his threat as Rose had told Kai to take away his ability to speak and Kai had done so with a snap of his fingers. Then Jacob was physically unable to utter a single word.

Our laughter died out as we heard the glass doors at the back of the house open and the others return.

"What's so funny?" Asked Emmett just as he stepped in the room. The answer obvious when he spotted Jacob. He looked startled and afraid by the boy's wild movements. The other poured into the room, looking rejuvenated with their pearly skin and eyes of molten gold. Every conversation died out when they spotted Jacob, who'd draped himself over the chaise lounge seductively.

" _Dios Mío!_ " Gasped Carmen, one hand resting on her chest. Their expressions only made Rose and I roar louder.

"I don't know what is happening or why but thank you." Irina said, stepping around his father to get a better look at the poor boy.

There was something about Irina taking pleasure in this that made it seem less fun; Kai seemed to feel so too as he leaned to trace a finger across Jacob's temple as he passed. As if freed from being hypnotized, Jacob's eyes widened and he leapt back, tripping over the piano's bench.

"Not funny, dude!" He yelled.

"Undoubtedly funny, _dude_." Kai countered.

"I'm with him." I threw my thumb at Kai. Jake did not look forgiving, but when he took in the way I smiled and the sound of my laughter, he dropped it and smiled himself. As if his humiliation was worth my smile.

"What was all that about?" Tanya asked, sitting to take off her damp socks.

Edward approached and smirked at the thought. "Kai had Jacob dance and took away his speech in hopes of inspiring Isabella to shield him. It did the opposite and only took away her focus. Am I right?" He asked, turning to me. I nodded, unafraid to smile back.

"It was terrifying." Jake said, taking in deep breaths.

"Breathe, Jake!" I said, gripping his shoulder. "In and out. _Hee, hee, hoo. Hee, hee, hoo!_ "

Rose and Kai burst into spontaneous laughter and Edward, seeing the memory in either of their minds, chuckled loudly at this too. Carlisle offered some of the Denali's an almost apologetic look and lead them upstairs to where he would offer them spare clothing.

"Found a couple of angry Grizzly's up North." Emmett said, wrapping Rose's slender form in his enormous arms when she moved in for a kiss. "Sure, you didn't want to come?"

"No. I've done my fair share of killing this week. With us all hunting at once, there'll be no animal population left to hunt." She only half-joked. Rose had been hunting the same night I tried to kill Kai. She'd lasted the longest before that night but being so close to me, drenched head to toe in warm blood, had put her on edge and she'd left my place only to head off into the woods in search of prey – just as the other Cullen's and Denali's had done now.

I'd played with the idea of asking to join them. My first 'Vegetarian' hunt. But I did not need to hunt and killing just for the sake of killing – even if it were only animals – was not something this new and improved Isabella would do. Not to mention the fact I was well-nourished from the other night. I wouldn't need to hunt for another few weeks. Maybe by the time we were long gone from Forks.

"I thought you were meant to be practicing?" Alice said to me. Edward had been right when he told me Alice couldn't stay mad at someone very long. I mean, she was still pissed as hell but she'd quickly abandoned and locked away her black wardrobe, and no longer deigned to answer any of my questions or respond to any of my comments.

"We were," I argued. "Or trying too." I said, leaning away from Kai and into the cushioned couch. I put my bare feet up on his lap and without glancing my way began to massage the soles. What a doll. "But it's not that easy to do when you've got a werewolf pirouetting about the place."

"He certainly offers comedic relief in dark times," Esme said, helping Alice out of her coat. They'd all dressed heavily to say they were hunting but I couldn't blame them. The storm had only worsened in the past two days. Lightning struck ground several times a day, often not too far from here and the thunder to follow was just as violent. Esme had demanded they all wear waterproof clothing as no one was stepping a foot in her house drenched not only in blood but in rainwater and sludge too.

"That may be true but it does nothing to help Bella." Kate faced me. "You lack initiative." Kate told me, capturing my attention and dampening in the mood. I had been practicing control my expressions in my free hours and was glad I didn't sneer or glare at her for being a killjoy.

"What do you mean?" I asked, taking my feet back from Kai and planting them firmly on the ground. The carpet felt warm beneath my toes.

"I mean you know Jacob in no true danger. How can you push yourself to the limit and explore the full extent of your power when there is no dire reason to?" I frowned, hearing what she was saying but not understand what she intended or where she was going with this. The answer became slowly apparent when Edward smirked and stepped forward.

"Huh?" Edward huffed, taking to her side "I like that idea."

"What idea?" I demanded. They looked over me.

"No. Whatever it is, No." Jacob said, shaking his head and standing up. "I'm not doing it. I'm going to find something to eat. I need it." Then he moved off towards the kitchen, rubbing his stomach without a look back.

"I don't mean you, wolf boy!" Kate hollered over her shoulder but she never took her eyes off someone else. It was only when I followed her gaze did I realize whatever idea she had…included Kai.

* * *

"I'll do it." Kai agreed the moment Kate finished explaining her ridiculous idea.

"No, absolutely not." I argued, shaking my head from side to side. At some point, I'd stepped between Kate and Kai where I now stood with my hands on my hips, staring down at her (Despite the fact she was taller than me) like a disapproving parent. There was no way in hell I was going to let her do this. Hurt him. Even if it could help.

"It's his choice." Kate said, proving a valid point I didn't care for. I narrowed my eyes and found Kate to be an enemy. Not an actual enemy, of course – like Aro – but an enemy to the man I held dear. She wanted to cause him unbearable, torturous harm and that I could not stand for. It was strange. Even with the difficulties of Kai and I's relationship, I still felt a pull to protect him at all costs. "And it will work." She told me undoubtedly.

"I don't care-"

"You need motivation, Isabella. If someone you care more deeply about than Jacob – No offence–" Jacob shrugged and smiled as if he was glad just to be considered someone I cared about and went back to eating his sandwich. "–is under an actual attack then you'll be more inclined to expand your shield to protect him."

"Even if that's true, we don't _need_ to do this. I'm making progress on my own. If I was able to find my shield and expand it more than an inch in just three days' worth of training then I'm sure in the eleven days we have left I will be able to master shielding others too."

"Don't get cocky. It took me centuries to master my gift."

"There's a difference between cocky and confident. And it'll take me until the end of the month to master mine."

"Okay, how about we just take a second to calm down," Carlisle said, stepping around the couch to lay a hand on both of our shoulders. I hadn't realized it but we'd both taken steps toward one another and now thinking about it, I'd been planning the easiest method of taking her life. I regretted that realization upon discovering it but it was not something I had control over. A primal urge to protect my – to protect Kai.

"How about you ask me what I want?" Kai said, taking Carlisle's place by my side. He spun me until I was facing him now. He wasn't talking to the both of us, he was aiming this at me. "You said yourself how you pitied Bella for being in a controlling relationship with Edward." I felt Edward stiffen but I didn't dare take my eyes off Kai's. "Don't try to control me in this one. I'm a big boy. I'm able to make decisions like this on my own and I want to do this."

"You'll be hurting, Kai." I told him without a reason too. I knew he already knew that. I just spoke the first words that came to mind.

"And? This is nothing. We've both felt Aro's wrath before. We've both been through that kind of torture. How much worse can this be? I can endure, darling."

"I wouldn't be so sure." Kate teased with a wink. I wanted to snatch out her beautiful golden eye just for that. She rolled up the sleeve of her sweater and took off her bracelets.

"You're certain this will help her?" Esme asked. She wrung her fingers and bit her lip, as if she were worried for Kai too. Maybe in the short time she had known him her maternal instincts had kicked in and she now saw him as one of her own. Carlisle wrapped his arm around her waist and looked at me with a forced smile. The others also returned upon hearing what was happening and wanting to see if it would work for themselves.

"Positive. Well, it should if she cares about him the way she says." A challenge in the way she spoke, the glance over her shoulder at me.

Kai taking my hands in his was the distraction I needed not to snap back at her. "Listen to me. I know you can do this, I trust you can. They don't, not yet. Prove them wrong." He winked and pecked me on the side of the cheek before stepping around me to stand before Kate. I turned but could find no words. "You're not going to set me on fire, are you?" He asked her.

"No. The shock is only in your mind."

"Like Jane." Edward said. Unlike I, Kai had felt Jane's fiery illusion in the past. Probably a result of disobeying Aro. I hated to imagine him in that kind of pain. If I had nightmares, they would be about that.

"Then why does it generate a spark? A glow?"

Kate shrugged, looking down at her palms. She rubbed her fingertips together and summoned a small and barely visible spark between them, static hissing. "Your guess is as good as mine. Aesthetics?" She dropped it and shrugged the thought away. "Now, roll up your sleeves."

Kai did as he was told.

Though I knew both he and Kate had valid points and that no true harm would befall him, I still found it physically difficult to stand aside and watch as she prepared to hurt him. It felt wrong, like I was betraying him. Every nerve in my body stung, every cell screamed at me to stop this but he had made a point of trusting me to do this. I couldn't embarrass him by refusing to try.

"I'll start on a low setting." She said.

"Are you ready?" Edward asked when he somehow found his way to my side. His question reminded me that I had a part to play in this too. Instead of answering, I shifted my position until I was resting my body weight on my front leg, bit my fingernails into my palms until they stung, closed my eyes and breathed in long and hard. I caressed the walls of my mind, ensuring I knew where they were before we begin.

I could do this. I had to. I opened my eyes. "I'm ready."

These past weeks of practice had paid off. It was not as difficult as I had predicted it to be to heave away the walls of my mind. I felt my shield grow and envelope the space around me, but just barely. Nowhere near Kai, nor Edward whom stood closest to me. My heart dropped when Kate finally grabbed Kai's arm without warning and he yelled out. He winced and gritted his teeth but remained standing.

"Kai?" I asked by way of asking if he was alright. I could hear the sizzling of the electricity and see the glow beneath her fingertips.

"I thought you could shield him, Bella?" Kate asked.

"My name is Isabella. And I can." I growled back, shoving again and again against my walls until I was straining, until it hurt my head and made my eyes sting.

"I'm going to up the voltage." Kate said. Kai barely had time to react before she tightened her grip; the glow intensified and his knees failed him. He buckled to the ground and let out more heart-wrenching cries. I had no control over my body. A hook between my ribs pulling me to him, connecting me to him. I moved to pull him away, to get her hand off him even if it meant removing it from the rest of her arm but before I could I felt two strong arms wrap around my stomach and reel me in.

"You have to stop it with your mind!" Edward called loudly over the sounds of Kai's screaming. I went to shove him off, dismissing his remark as nothing but jealously but Kai managed to find words too.

"Edward's right!" He yelled, then crumpled in on his stomach, his nails almost tearing through the rug. "You can- _Argh_! You can do this!" Kate stopped for a second to give Kai a pause of relief. "You can…do this, love." He gasped as he leant against the base of the couch. It was if Kate had drained his strength, I had never seen him so physically weak. Even now he could force out a smile.

"In battle, you won't be able to stand by his side all the time. You need to be able to shield him from a distance because one day you might need to do it from across a battlefield." Edward told me. The truth of his words setting in. He was right. Kate started again, as did Kai's screams. "Come on, Isabella." Edward ushered me. I pulled back my shield and solidified the walls of my mind, only to then throw everything I had at them. The circumference stretched outwards, farther than before but still not enough. I did not stop pushing.

It was as if trying to blow up a balloon that refused to inflate. You try until you exhaust all the air in your lungs and then it begins to burn and you have to stop. But the balloon was my psychic shield and the burning lungs was the ripping of my mind. Only I wouldn't stop. Not until he healed.

"This one's on full power!" Kate yelled and then I heard the worst sound of my entire existence. His yell was so loud I was sure it shook the house, I could feel it through my toes. It echoed forever through the building and bounced off the walls of my skull. It stabbed at my heart again and again and again until I could do nothing but sob tearlessly and, with one deep breath… _push!_

I exploded.

My shield gave in and listened to every command I gave it. It exploded throughout the room, the house until it reached the forest beyond. This was no balloon. This was a supernova. A blast so extreme it devoured everything within its path. Only instead of destroying everything, it bound me to everything as if I were the remains of the dying star in its centre. I felt everything. Everyone. I was connected by some unknown force to everything. The carpet, the fire, the furniture, the walls, the glass, the pipes, the windows, the grass and rain and cold beyond.

As it warped around everything living, I felt them. Their individualistic life-forces like radiating warm spots within my range. I'd done it. I'd done it. I felt everything. I shielded him.

But why was he still screaming?

I realized why. Both he _and_ Kate were within my little bubble. And I supposed that once inside, your powers could still affect others. I reigned my shield in, feeling the most pleasurable sting of relief I had ever experienced but then halted until only Kai was protected. At once he gasped and stopped writhing, he body tensed but then relaxed. He opened his eyes but frowned, frowned at the hand still on his arm. At the expression on Kate's face.

Then he looked to me and smile. After all that, he smiled.

And so did I.

Kate let go of Kai and when I was sure he was okay, I dropped my efforts and felt my shield recoil like an elastic band. That included the sting as it shot back together. Everyone was silent. Staring at me, at Kai. Kate stood a little taller and shrugged.

"I told you it'd work."

I lunged. Not at her but at Kai. I threw myself atop him and wrapped my arms around his throat, holding him into my chest until we could be no closer apart. I didn't care if they saw me like this, as loving. It was what I wanted. Kai was okay and I'd done it. I ran my fingers through his unkempt hair, shushing him as if he were still crying but he was laughing.

"I'm so proud of you." He said, pulling back until our eyes were less than an inch apart.

I kissed him again. Fuck it. Fuck being angry and fuck being sad. Fuck what he did to me and why he did it. I loved him. The others laughed and even applauded and it only made Kai and I laugh while we kissed. It wasn't enough to break us apart but it was enough to make it a strangely happy and sad kiss all at the same time.

"Are you okay?" I asked, lifting him to his feet when we finally did break apart.

"I'm fine, I told you I would be." He brushed my hair behind my ear and I kissed his palm.

"You're sure?"

"Yes!"

I paused but then said. "Okay, we should go again." He laughed until he realized I was serious. He said he was excited to see me do it again but maybe another Guinea Pig this time. After a small Argument, Rose convinced Emmett to give it a go. Emmett did not seem too thrilled about it but he wasn't about to let his masculinity be threatened either.

It was only when preparing to start again did I realize Edward had left the room.

* * *

I was wrong before when I assumed I wouldn't need to feed again until after we left Forks. It had been a week since I apologised to the Cullen's and eight days since I fed and although I was not as weak as I had been before that dangerous hunting trip, I was still growing weaker with each passing day; and with this progress on my shielding and the new training I was now undergoing, I needed to be as strong as I can be.

This was my reasoning for wanting to go along with Edward on his next hunting trip which happened to be in only an hour. The day before when he'd gone with his family, he had been distracted and chose to wait until he could hunt alone – or with my company, now.

"Do you think Edward will mind if I join you?" Kai said. I put my feet on the coffee table and begun lacing up my boots.

"I don't think Edward wants you anywhere near us but you can still come." I said then switched to lace up the other. Edward didn't say anything about Kai and I's kiss. He didn't get angry or yell or fight. He'd walked away after it and resumed talking to me just like normal the next time we met up. I knew it bothered him. It would bother me. But I couldn't help what I felt. I didn't even know what I felt.

I knew I loved Kai and I knew the others knew it too but Kai and I weren't what we used to be. I'd forgiven him for everything and though I wanted him, I had yet to invite him to my bed. It wasn't that I didn't want to – I wanted to so badly – but I wanted to take things carefully. Slow. I wanted to appreciate things. At least for a short while. Kai understood that and that's what made him worth it.

"Okay, I'll tag along." Kai said, reaching for his coat.

"Sure, but why?" I wondered. Did he simply want to see my first animal kill? Or did he want to keep an eye on Edward?

"Because if you can change your diet for these people, I can too"

This stunned me for a minute. "Are you serious?"

"Entirely. I want to give it a try." He said, tucking his arms into the pockets of my own coat. I reached in to interlock our fingers and beamed up at him.

"Look how far we've fallen." I told him. "A month ago, we were in the handful of this world's most important vampires. We were dangerous – people feared our names. We took pleasuring in frightening humans, in listening to them scream as they died. Now?"

"Now we're living in an old, shabby loft in Port Angeles and about to run off hunting bunnies." I laughed.

"Exactly," I titled my head back and kissed him. "And I wouldn't have it any other way."

* * *

We chose to meet at midday in the hopes that the storm would lighten up but it seemed to remain just as violent, if not more so, by the time we met in the middle of the forest. The storm had had its toll on world around us, the heavy rainwater turning the dirt to sludge, the cold seeping through my clothes and settling in. Water droplets fell from the tips of leaves, they clung to my eyelashes until I blinked them away.

"How much farther?" I asked Edward whom walked a short distance ahead of Kai and me.

"Not much farther." He responded. As predicted, Edward hadn't been too thrilled to discover Kai was joining us for our hunt but he hadn't refused to take him too. He knew if he had then he would have lost this time alone with me and that was something I believed he wanted deeply. When I pictured my first animal hunt my imagination had created a beautiful scene. A forest brimming with life and colour, the sun shining down, glistening over my skin as I prowled through the thicket in search of Bambi. In reality, I was trudging through brown and orange leaves, wet mud, with a storm rumbling above and on the hunt for Simba.

Edward had suggested starting off with a carnivorous animal such as a mountain lion just because the taste of their blood was closer to that of a human than that of a doe or a stag or any other herbivorous creature and the transition from one to the other would be easier on us this way. I was grateful he'd suggested it, it showed he was thinking about my well-being, my preference, which was not something the old Edward would have done. I was still in Limbo when it came to Edward. We weren't friends but we weren't strangers either. Acquaintances? Acquaintances with a history? I couldn't name what we were to one another. Was there even a word for what we had?

"This way, follow me." Edward told us then set off running in the opposite direction.

"Here we go." I told Kai.

"Here we go." He repeated and we set off following Edward's lead.

It wasn't very long before we were deep into the forest, miles and miles away from any town or human. That was good. If I worked myself up for the kill and unleashed the hunter when there was a chance of catching the scent of human blood, I knew I would been unable to refrain from pursuing it even with the control I had left. Edward stopped and Kai and I slowed to a walk at either side of him.

"A herd of deer not too far from here."

"I hear them." I answered. I could hear their hooves snapping twins, splashing in puddles. Snorts and bleats, the tiny thudding of their heartbeats.

"Do you want them or would you prefer carnivorous blood?" He wondered.

"They will do fine for me." Kai answered. Edward shrugged, waiting. Kai and I answered the look in Edward's eye by nodding to one another and set off moving stealthily towards his prey. We found them in a dip in the woods, a clearing in which the herd had taken shelter beneath a canopy of leaves. Shelter from the storm. There weren't as many as I'd hoped, less than half a dozen. Not enough for all of us.

"You go first." I told Kai. "Then we'll find me something a little tastier." Kai nodded and smiled and I was curious about how this would go. I'd seen him hunt before but it had been centuries ago. He nodded and took off his coat, dropping it to the ground. He eyed up the mob of deer and elk. "Have fun." I said and he didn't even look at me. I tried to hide my frown. Had – Had that upset him?

He moved. In an instant, he'd thrown himself across the clearing until he landed beside one large doe. The others took off the moment they sensed danger but the female in Kai's grasp had no hope. Kai pinned the doe to the ground with his knee, he pressed it into her neck but not enough to hurt her. I frowned at Edward and surprisingly he looked just as confused as I. What was Kai doing? The answer became apart when the doe stopped bleating; Kai has his fingers pressed to its head. Her rapid breathing lessened, it calmed.

Then just as she drifted off to sleep Kai leaned down and suck his teeth into the soft flesh of her throat. She didn't kick, she didn't move or cry or anything. She lay there still and willing as Kai rested her body on his lap and squeezed her to him as he fed. He did not spill a single drop of blood but I could feel it's warmth dying out, taste its unusual flavour in the air. Neither Edward or I spoke or even moved until Kai let he body down gently and slowly lifted to his feet.

Wiping his mouth on his collar, he turned to face us. Startled by our expressions, he tensed. "What's wrong?"

I waited a second for Edward to speak as I hadn't an answer, but I remembered this was Kai and I would have to be the one. "Um, nothing. Nothing's wrong. It's just…what did you do?"

"I took away her pain." He answered as if it meant nothing at all. Did it? "I- I've been doing it for a while. Any time I've needed to hunt, I've taken away their pain and feelings before they even realize they're in danger. I don't know why I didn't tell you. I guess, I wasn't sure how you would take it." I realized that if this was his first animal hunt, then any humans he'd killed the past few weeks had died painlessly.

He set off walking and Edward and I flew to his sides. I slipped my fingers through his and gave them a squeeze. "Why would it matter what I thought of it?" I wondered.

"I don't know. In our past – both real and your memories – you and I had always been…dark. You said so earlier. You were what Aro had demanded I make you and I acted along with it because I loved you. But…now you have changed I feel I can be truer to myself. I'm no longer the heartless immortal I once was and then continued pretending to be. I want to be better and I want a chance of redemption for my sins. Who knows, maybe I'll hunt animals just this once and never return to it but maybe I'll love it and become a better person because of it but one thing I know I will always do before killing is giving the victim the courtesy of a painless death."

"I think it is a brave and honourable thing." Edward said, speaking to Kai for the first time since acknowledging he was joining us. He didn't so sound hostile towards him, as if he could tolerate the sight of Kai at least if he knew he wasn't killing humans or inflicting pain and horror in the meantime. Kai shrugged and pulled a face to show he didn't know how to respond to that.

"As do I." I said. I did not think it was something I could do. Truthfully, I still enjoyed the thrill and adrenaline rush that came with the hunt. It was something all vampires had. Some loved it more than others. Some, apparently, hated it. I could not ask Kai to do the same for any victims of mine but I could hope he would not blame me for it either.

"Let's go follow the others, then we'll find something for you." He kissed my cheek and I could taste the blood on his breath. It made me thirsty. I nodded and we set off running again.

* * *

Kai found the remaining deer that had fled and like with the first, he took their pain before taking their lives. Fortunately, the few we'd followed led us to the rest of the herd and Edward allowed himself a moment of privacy to hunt. I watched Kai but could hear Edward in the trees beyond, feeding, killing, and It made me smile. He always seemed to want to come across as perfect but in the end, he was just another killer.

When they were done and all the bodies were spent, they looked to me. "Let's go find you a lion." Kai said. And that's what we did. It took a little longer but because Edward had been hunting animals longer than we, he could differentiate between deer blood and lion blood; it was a pain to find a trail, a scent. I came close to telling him deer would do but before I did, he lifted a finger to silence me and pointed along a mountain edge below and a jagged cave entrance and – and there, approaching from the opposite direction. A soaking wet, tawny coloured mountain lion returning home.

"Finally." I whispered low enough for only the two of them to hear.

"Do you want to take this one, or shall I?" Kai asked. "I'm kind of curious about their blood." I looked back down at her and took in her magnificence. A fascinating creature and one I was sad to be slaughtering. Like me – like all of us – she was a predator and her design was just as beautiful as our own. Only whereas we were designed to trick our prey, to lure them in with our musical voices and otherworldly beauty, the lioness' design was not based on beauty but on practicality; she was built four times our mass with muscle, her mouth was wide and filled with flesh shredding fangs. The soft thudding of her paws continued stealthily beneath me and I knew she had powerful claws to pin down her prey as she went in for the kill.

Beautiful and majestic and filled with blood. "She's mine." I told him. unzipping the jacket and throwing it to the ground. The rainwater soaked my cashmere sweater in seconds, along with my hair which I peeled back from my face and tied back with a band from my wrist. Then my body automatically dropping into a crouch. Understanding, Kai and Edward moved a good ten feet away. It was never a good idea to get to closer to another immortal when feeding, they lose themselves and become unstoppable. Their primal and feral nature kicks in and they would attack their own mate if they thought the mate was going to in-between them and their quarry. It was part of the reason the Cullen's and Denali's pinned me down the night I attacked Mike. If I'd been hunting him for food and not sport, it would have been nearly impossible to snap me out of my bloodlust.

I pulled in deep through my nose, taking in the smells of the forest. The trees and the dirt and the rain and the moss, but above all else was the attractive, warm call of blood. Like a splash of red colour in a colourless world. The only thing that mattered. With a light bound, I sailed through the air and landed directly behind the lion's tail. He felt the vibrations in his paws through the earth and whirled, shrieking surprise and defiance. I didn't hesitate. I moved again, tackling her full on until the two of us crashed against the ground in an explosion of dirt and water. Unlike the shifters, her teeth were not strong enough to pierce my skin, nor was her greater muscle mass enough to overpower my strength. Finding herself in actual danger, she snapped at my face and roared.

Her roar came out in more of a scream; high and grating and full of feline rage. I felt it resonate through me, vibrating through to my very core. But it was nothing compared to the roar I gave it in return. My mouth was stretched open wide, my teeth bared as my roar blasted its way through my surroundings, drowning out all other inferior clutter noise. The sound of raw power that evoked primeval emotions and fear. The lion recognized it was not facing an ordinary human but instead was in the presence of a greater predator and tried to flee rather than challenge _me_.

But she could not.

She died too quickly and the blood was gone in no time at all. It was…different. The flavour was wrong but the blood was hot and wet and soothing. I could feel its effects taking hold, strengthening me within seconds of finishing the kill. It was nothing compared to human blood, a huge disappointment but I had known it would be. But…it was bearable. It was acceptable. I knew I could make the switch to this diet and It would not destroy me.

The blood may not have been up to par but the kill itself had been exhilarating.

"What a _rush!_ " I exclaimed when the two of them dropped in. "Killing humans are one thing but they never put up a fight. But she, she was going in for the kill, look at me!" I said, showing them my shredded sweater. My pale flesh visible where her claws had raked against my skin but could find to purchase. Kai then helped me to my feet; he didn't care about the wet blood on my hands or staining my chin. Edward, on the other hand, just gawked at me in disbelief and horror.

"That was terrifying." He spoke aloud, shock crossing his features. "I hoped I would never have to see you like this. I figured it'd be easier to watch considering you've killed hundreds before." (I chose to correct the hundreds to thousands.) "But it was just as awful as I imagined."

"You feared watching Bella hunt because you did not want her to become a monster. But we are all monsters, Edward. We're just the monsters trying to be good."

* * *

"Holy shit!" I cried out in laughter.

"What!" Kai asked, racing into the bathroom. We were back at the loft and after returning from the hunt, I'd decided to shower. I stood now in front of the mirror above the skin basin, staring at my reflection. When I turned Kai understood my exclamation at once. My eyes. Gone were my red eyes and in their place, were two orbs of amber, sparkling with golden hues. I knew exactly how they looked not only because of the mirror but because Kai had them too.

And they were more beautiful than his red ones.

* * *

With a sigh, I closed the book in my lap and flew across the room to slide it back into its place in my now fully-stocked bookshelf. It was the seventh book I'd finished that day and soon I would have no books left. I'd read hundreds since we bought this apartment and already had two bookshelves in the bedroom too. I did not know how human bookworms lived their lives in tiny homes, restricting their book buying habits as they simply did not have the money or the room. I was running out of the latter.

I wondered if buying my own library was going too far?

I would ask Kai when he was home. He was out. He'd gone to the closest store to collect a few things. Jacob was on his way over and surprisingly, he was bringing Leah along too. Kai had mentioned at some point that though he did not eat food, he knew how to cook and Jacob had challenged him to cooking a meal for him and Leah. Kai, wanting to get to know Jacob more considering my friendship with him, had invited them both over. I waited here. I was warm now, finally, in my cosy clothes and with my hair washed and soft and hanging halfway down my spine. I kept checking my eyes in the mirror, expecting them to change but they would not. This was the first time in centuries my physical appearance had altered in any significant way and I found myself obsessing over it.

I heard a rapid heartbeat approaching from the stairwell. Assuming it to be Jacob, I hurried over to open the door for them.

"Come on in." I greeted, flinging the door open.

But it was not Jacob standing in my threshold. It was a human girl, soaked to the core with rain, teeth chittering, a terrified expression on her face. I…I knew her. She was the woman we had bought the apartment from, the retail agent.

"Help me." She pleaded, the tears streaming down her face were lost in the rainwater dripping from her hair. Before I could respond, the girl collapsed to the ground. I would have caught her, helped her up if it wasn't for the person standing directly behind her. His scent hit me at the same time I took him in. Tall and thin, his lanky form hidden beneath a black trench coat. I knew his square jaw and his sharp cheekbones. I recognized his white, windswept hair and saw myself in the reflection of his ruby red eyes.

"Hello, Isabella."

I found myself face to face with Sebastian.

* * *

Asher's Note:

Hello lovely readers. Chapter Twenty-three is here! I am quite happy with how this chapter turned out. The events that took place all seemed to flow together well for me as the author. In this chapter, Isabella apologises to the Cullen's and the Denali's and they forgive her when she promises to become a vegetarian. We see her successfully master her shield for the first time and shield another. Now she will have to learn how to reign it in. There is a lot of scenes in this chapter that are similar to what we see in Breaking Dawn. Isabella practicing with Kate only Kai is the one in danger and not Renesmee. Also, her first vegetarian hunt. I chose a mountain lion to reflect on Bella's hunt in Breaking Dawn but changed some things. I hope you enjoyed my chapter and the surprise ending. I have a question for you readers if you would be so kind to answer: Are my chapters too long?

My chapters only seem to be getting longer with each update. This chapter is three times the size of the first. Almost fifteen thousand words. I personally love long chapters but for you readers, do you prefer short chapters or long ones? With shorter chapters I can update more often but they will not be as action packed or full as these ones. Longer chapters are full of more fun stuff but the waiting time is longer. If I post shorter chapters then it leaves less time for people to read and review. Please, let me know!

* * *

Responding to your reviews.

Traceybuie: Hi, thank you for reviewing! At the moment, Isabella hopes it will be a permanent thing but it isn't something she can be sure of yet. As for the blending the memories together, that is the idea. She hopes to remember all of Bella's memories as well as keeping the same memories she has. Only then can she figure out who she is and who she wants to be. It's only fair. Yeah, Edward has developed a new outlook on the entire situation. As explained in the beginning of this chapter, he realized how unfair he was being.

M: Hello, M. Thank you for reviewing. As I've said before, I edit my chapters very late at night because that is the only time of day I can do so. This means there will be spelling and grammatical mistakes. I re-read my chapters a few times before posting. If there are mistakes in them, I appreciate people letting me know. But ironically, you made a spelling mistake in your review. Check is speck 'Check,' not 'Cheek'. Also, you left your review on chapter 9. We are on chapter twenty-three. Maybe read the rest of the story before complaining about it?

Hopestreet: Thank you very much, Hopestreet. Not only for reviewing but for telling me my spelling is fine. I don't need to 'Cheek' it. ;) I'm glad you did not like Bella here. It's difficult to portray her as someone who is trying to do good but doesn't realize when she is doing wrong. She enjoys power very much. But right now, her focus is on staying alive and keeping Kai alive. If keeping the Cullen's alive means she can do that then that is what she will do. I hope this chapter helped convey that.

Jadeeeee: Thank you for both of your reviews! Your kind words mean a lot to me and I am certainly planning to finish this story!

Goldielover: I wondered too. The Isabella I started this story with would laugh at the idea of feeding from animals, and then she would go out and kill a dozen innocents for the fun of it. But Isabella is much different now and she is willing to try it and tick to it if it means keeping the people she cares about safe. Edward was very compliant in this chapter and understanding. You may be right that he still has hopes for them. But everything will become apparent in time. Thank you so much, hope you enjoyed.

Missdiamond16: Hello! You reviewed on chapter 7 so I am unsure if you will see this response or not but I wanted to say thank you anyway!

EverydayNerd: Hi! I love your name. You reviewed chapter 12, if you see this response then thank you very much! I did slip in a LOT of ACOTAR references simply because at the time of writing, I was going through ACOTAR withdrawals and I needed it in my life. I did base Kai on Rhys and think I have made them similar. I have a type, it seems.

Guest #1: I love Kai too! Yes, he is staying. Well, he will be in the rest of the story. If he lives or not by the very end is a different matter… Ha-ha! I love that idea. A polyamorous relationship? Hmm.

~Asher~


	24. Chapter 24

~ Isabella's POV ~

* * *

Sebastian.

Panic and horror flooded my senses making it near impossible to create a consistent thought. Seeing him standing there in my doorway – him of all people it could have been – had thrown off my focus and left me in a state of disbelief. I found myself not only face-to-face with an old friend but an active member of the Volturi Guard. I could make little sense of the conflicting thoughts and emotions that met me in that moment; could not begin to answer any of the many questions that came to mind: What was he doing here? How had he found me? What did this mean? Was he alone? Out of the hundreds of questions I had, only one truly mattered: was he here to kill me?

One thing I was sure of was I was not going to stick around to find out.

Just as the corner of his thin, pale lips twisted into a smirk, I struck. A fast and calculated punch fuelled by all the resentment I held not towards him, per se, but what he stood for. The master he worshiped. The punch did little damage if any but inflicting damage had not been my aim; it had been to create space between us and the blow had done just that. With a startled cry, Sebastian stumbled backward a good five feet down the hall, giving me enough time to slam the door shut and throw myself against it. It could buy me only mere seconds but by now I knew that a second could mean the difference between life and death.

I could have – and admittingly should have – used that second to throw myself through the window I currently faced. In doing so I would certainly have terrified the humans on the street below but surely the speed in which I would have moved would easily have propelled me into the air and onto the roof of the adjacent building before anyone had the chance to register what had even happened. It was the smart move. The safe one. Instead of using those seconds effectively, I found myself wasting my opportunity to spare a thought for the unconscious human woman I had abandoned and left defenceless on the other side of the door.

From the looks of the woman she had not been injured; shaken up and scarred for life perhaps, but I had sensed no open wound. This meant that Sebastian wanted her alive for whatever reason. I did not have time to wonder. I blinked for a second as to not let my surroundings distract me from my thoughts but even then, I could only see her desperate expression behind my eyelids. I could only hear her plead.

"Help me…"

With a grunt, I pushed away from the door. "Fuck!"

Yanking the door open with enough power to scrunch up the door handle, I reached down and hauled the woman over my shoulder just as Sebastian was getting to his feet and laughing loudly at what I had done. Again, I kicked the door shut but this time did not waste any time. I flew into the bedroom, lay down the woman, closed the door and then bounded out to face him just as he stepped into the apartment.

"Come now, Isabella." He said almost comedically, "Is that any way to treat an old friend? Where is your hospitality?"

"You are no friend of mine, Sebastian." I snarled, stalking forward to meet him. I could not leave the girl alone with him, or risk endangering her life by throwing the two of us through the window. This left me with only one option. I had to fight. As the space between us lessened, I reminded myself of exactly who I was. What great accomplishments I had made in my time – both the good and horrendous. I reflected on the hundreds of years I had spent training to become an experienced assassin, on the thousands of lives these hands had taken. Compared to my enemies of the past, Sebastian was nothing.

"Are we really going to do this?" He asked as if he couldn't quite believe the murderous rage I alluded.

"Don't worry, Sebastian, this won't last long." I burst into a sprint and he barely had time to lift his hands before I crashed into him and took him down. The building quaked beneath us as we hit the far wall in an explosion of stone, plaster, and dust. I held Sebastian down in the hole we had made; his fingers shot up and wrapped tightly around my own as he strained to keep them away from his throat; tried to pry them free. Knowing perhaps his physical strength was a great deal larger than my own, I twisted free then slashed my nails at his throat but instead hit the wall in the place he had been, knocking aside half a dozen loose bricks.

I spun just as Sebastian darted around me and then pinned me to the wall, holding down my hands by the wrists. He leaned in close and cracked a smile. "I can't believe my eyes. Wait – let me rephrase that. I can't believe your eyes. Isabella of the Volturi drinking animal blood. Who would ever have believed it?" In his red eyes, I could see my amber glowing back at me.

"I am no longer Isabella of the Volturi and believe me, Sebastian, no one is more surprised by it than I." I slammed my forehead into his nose, cracking it clean across the bridge. He howled as he stepped back but regained his focus as I swiped at him again and again but each time he evaded death by ducking beneath my swipe. As I changed tactics and went low, Sebastian leapt up off the ground and hung in the corner of the room, his fingertips digging into the crevices between the bricks.

Through my tangled hair, I sneered up at him. This was going to take longer than I had anticipated.

"You're really overreacting. Let's talk." He yelled.

"You want to talk? Fine. Let's talk."

A snarl broke through my clenched teeth just as he dropped to the ground, only to be met by me. Without a second's hesitation, I gripped tightly onto his shoulders – my nails tearing through the leather of his long coat – and hauled him up and launched him aside. He flipped through the air, twisting his body impressively until he landed on the soles of his feet and skidded to a stop with his sharp claws slicing through the floorboards like nails on a chalkboard.

"What happened to 'Let's talk?'" He exclaimed.

"You talk too much." I used this moment to best position my body so my right leg was behind my leg and my foot angled slightly to the right to ensure my balance. My hands were up, finger clenched and at the ready to destroy. Then as Sebastian found his footing, I struck. My fist slammed into the already broken concrete of his nose, blinding him momentarily. Before he had time to recover, however, I struck again; a solid right punch followed by two shorter left to the gut. He doubled over with a grunt and I brought my leg up through the air in a clean, hard swing but, anticipating the move, he managed to grab it and twist until the muscles there burned and screamed in reaction to my thigh beginning to splinter. Using my other leg, I kicked up off the ground until being lifted only by his hand and then, pushing down with all my weight, I managed to wrap my legs around his torso and bring down my elbows time and time again.

His only reaction was to blindly move and try to throw me off but in doing so, he sent us both flying over the back of the couch, landing on and shattering to pieces the coffee table beneath us. The glass broke into a dozen fragments and the wood splintered as we rolled across it. Having the upper hand, I managed to roll atop him and then wrap my hands around his neck.

As my thumbs broke into the hollow of his throat, I could see the panic set in his eyes and for the first time, he wondered if he was going to die. "S-stop!" He roared.

"And why should I? So you can kill me? Or did you come to try and take me back?"

"Neither!" He yelled hoarsely, attempting and failing to pry my finger away. I dug in deeper, my nails crushing through his diamond hard skin. "I was the one who got you out!"

Then I hesitated and I could see in his eyes he knew he had spared himself at least another minute to live. My grip was absolute, as was the possibility of my executing him if he even thought to make a move. I considered doing it anyway, ending him to spare myself the lies he was sure to spout. Still, I found myself waiting until finally, a growl broke through my lip.

"What are you talking about?" Sebastian was lucky. In the past when in the heat of battle, I sometimes lost myself to the cold rage that took over my body in that moment. There had been times on the battlefield where I had lost all sense of humanity and become a literal monster; only realizing how many lay dead around me when there was no one left to destroy.

"It was me. I helped you escape from Volterra."

Before I could respond, Sebastian and I both caught the sound of footstep stampeding up the stairwell and down the hall and then Kai threw himself through the door, almost tearing it from its hinges.

"Isabella!" He roared, then a fraction of a second later caught sight of us and launched himself across the room. He skidded to a stop by my side and grabbed onto my shoulder with his hand, squeezing tightly. I understood it. The need to just make some form of contact with one another. It had taken a great deal of effort to keep my eyes locked onto Sebastian's and not look to Kai's golden ones in return. "Sebastian." Kai boomed, his voice deepening. "What are you doing here?"

"Kai, Charming as always, and I am here to help you both." He spat, finding it difficult to speak at all.

"Bullshit." I secured my grip and he grunted and shuffled beneath me, reaching up to grab my hand but he would not dear pry my fingers away out of fear of taking a lump of his throat out with them.

"I'm telling you the truth." I had to give it to him. He sounded sincere.

"What truth?" Kai demanded as dropped down to our level. Sebastian was in too much pain to answer so Kai faced me. "What truth, Isabella?"

"He says he helped me escape."

"I got Isabella out!" Sebastian gasped, struggling to speak.

"I got myself out!" I growled in response.

"What do you mean?" Kai asked him. I noticed the concern fading and becoming a curiosity.

"Who cares what he means?" I snapped, "He's on the verge of death, he'll say anything to make us spare him. I should end him now and then we need to go, we need to leave town before whoever he's told comes looking."

"No one is coming! No one knows _I'm_ here, let alone _you_! Last I heard, you were off in the middle-east, on the run!" At least we knew Kai's compulsion had fooled not only the guards he had left Volterra with but the masters back in the city.

"Then how did you know we were here?" Kai questioned.

"I'd happily tell you if Isabella would kindly remove her fingers from my throat!"

"Isabella?"

"I'm not letting him go!" Was he insane? Had he not heard me? Sebastian would say anything now to live. Giving up this opportunity to kill him could mean one of us losing our lives instead.

"Don't worry," Kai said, moving until he was knelt by Sebastian's face. "He's not going anywhere." He then placed his hand on Sebastian's temples and I watched Sebastian's eyes widen as he felt Kai burrow into his subconscious and seize control. "Now, Sebastian, when Isabella releases you, you are going to rise and back up into the corner where you will stay until instructed otherwise. You are unable to cause Isabella or I any physical harm, no matter how hard you try or desire to. Understood?"

Sebastian – without a smile to be seen – nodded once. I looked to Kai for confirmation and Kai gave a curt nod also. Then I slowly withdrew my fingers from his throat and stepped away. Sebastian lay still for a second and Kai and I watched as the indentations my fingertips had made slowly begun to heal and the cracks spiraling out from them seal into fine lines that soon vanished without a trace. When he was sure his head was still attached, Sebastian cracked a smile and sprung to his feet.

Immediately, my guard was up but Kai was confident enough in his ability to not move an inch. Sebastian looked at us, then his eyes flickered to the doorway and the window but he found himself following the law Kai had implanted into his mind and he stepped back until his head hit the wall.

"Happy now?" He let out a heavy breath and folded his arms.

The moment Kai was sure Sebastian would not move an inch he spun me to face him and hauled me into his arms. Before all of this, I would have been outraged that a lover of mine had dared to show my vulnerability – my passion for them – in front of an enemy. For a long time, I had held the insane notion that to love meant you were weak but things had changed and I could only remind myself that if Sebastian had been here to kill me, there was a chance – however small – that when Kai left that morning to buy groceries, it may have very well been the last time I had seen him and I hadn't even looked up from my book when he'd leaned in to kiss my cheek and say goodbye.

Realizing that could have been the last time I would have seen him, I allowed this hug and embraced it. He squeezed my head to his chest and ran his fingers through my hair, then leaned down to press his lips to my forehead. It took only one glance into his eyes to know the same thought was going through his head. We were too comfortable here. We had relied too much on Kai's ability but I should have known the dangers and risks, should have been more prepared for what was to come.

He rested his forehead against my own.

We would not let this happen again.

I sent a text to Alice, telling her what had happened and she informed me she and the others were all on their way and would be here within half an hour. In that time, I chose to try and clean up what remained of our ruined apartment. Almost all the furniture had been destroyed, along with one wall which I was surprised was still standing. Sebastian made comments here and there and tried to ask questions but I had decided it best to wait until the others had arrived before we questioned him, so Kai thankfully used his ability to silence Sebastian until otherwise instructed.

Just as I was piling up the last of the rubble, Kai stepped into the bedroom to face the human woman we had heard rousing from her sleep. I'd explained to him what had happened and who she was and Kai, until we could decide what to do with her, simply put her back to sleep.

It wasn't long before we heard footsteps but with them were a set of heartbeats.

"Jake, Leah," I said when the two of them hurried into the apartment, both with panicked expressions on their faces. They had dressed nicely – well, they weren't wearing shorts is what I meant by that statement. They both wore Jeans, and Jacob had a plain red T-shirt on and Leah wore a sleeveless gray shirt. I felt a wave of warmth hit me and could feel their bodies vibrating through the floorboards. I could even see wisps of steam leaving their skin. If they were to have phased, their clothes would have been nothing but shreds of fabric on the floor.

"What happened?" Jake demanded, storming across the room to get a better look at Sebastian.

"Calm down, the both of you. The place is already ruined. If you two phase you'll take the floor through." I grunted as I hauled one bag of rubble across the room.

"Who's this!" Jacob pointed a finger accusingly at Sebastian. Sebastian still vowed to silence, lifted a hand and gave a salute.

"This is Sebastian. He's a member of the Volturi Guard." At the mention of the Volturi, Jacob and Leah stiffened and I could sense their anger and drive to destroy our kind overcoming them. I moved to stand in front of them and reached out to touch his arm – it burnt to the touch. "Jake, look at me?" To pull his eyes away from Sebastian was clearly an effort.

"We should kill him. Now."

"Believe me, I wish we could. But we can't. Not yet, at least." I turned him away from Sebastian and lead him over to the kitchen where he leaned back against the marble countertop.

"Why can't we kill him?" Leah demanded as she moved to stand by Jacob. I believed this was the first time she had spoken to me directly.

"We have questions and he has answers. He can't answer them if he's dead."

Sebastian began nodding in agreement. I ignored him.

"This is too dangerous," Leah said, shaking her head.

"He's one vampire against us four, and the others are all on their way," I argued. "Plus, Kai has control over him so you needn't worry."

"I don't like is. Sam won't like it." Leah said, storming out into the hall. After giving Jacob a look that said, 'Girl of your dreams, huh?' The two of us followed her.

"Leah, what are you doing?" Jacob asked. I imagined him asking her that very question a lot.

"I'm going to call Sam." She said, pulling her cell out of her jeans and turning toward the stairwell.

"There's no need to do that," I said, appearing in front of her and earning myself a disgusted glare in return.

"He's our Alpha. If he isn't here, he'll take it as a sign you don't trust him and you really want that?"

I didn't answer and instead, let her storm around me and rush down the stairs.

"Just let her call him. He'll find out one way, better to be in person than through this." He tapped his temple. I knew he was right. Inviting the pack Alpha here to witness whatever pathetic story Sebastian had for us would be a sign of good faith. Changing the subject, Jacob nudged me in the arm. "So, I'm guessing this means no dinner, huh?"

"Sorry, Jake." I laughed. "No dinner." Unbelievable. "C'mon," I said, heading back to the apartment. Sebastian was checking out his reflection in the mirror on the wall, playing with his long, windswept hair and checking his teeth if only for the sake of it. He looked bored. I bounded across the room, grabbed him by the collar and hauled him back into the corner of the room. He grunted and looked as if he wanted to yell but kept his mouth shut. He went to stand upright again until I slammed my foot into his chest and again he hit the wall.

"Is it weird I'm turned on right now?" I heard Kai mutter to Jake who erupted into laughter across the room. Ignoring them, I knelt by Sebastian's side and grabbed his face in my hand.

"The others are on their way and when they show up I expect you to have one hell of a story to tell because if you don't I'm going to finish what I started. We may have a history but if ending you is the price to keep me – them – safe? I'll happily pay it."

He needn't try to respond. His eyes spoke for him. They said, " _I understand, and I do_."

* * *

By the time the hour was up the others had all arrived and I found my apartment felt a great deal smaller than it had before. The Vampires, being faster than the wolves and being informed of Sebastian's arrival before the pack, were the first to show up but the wolves were only minutes behind. The immortals among the crowd walked into the room with their heads held high, with grace and dignity. They merely glanced at Sebastian as if he were nothing but a nuisance; the wolves, however, glared daggers at Sebastian the moment they lay eyes on him. Their giant hands were balled into giant fists and as Jacob and Leah had been, they were itching to phase.

In truth, they looked very uncomfortable in this place. I knew they would have been more comfortable in their beast forms but I also knew my apartment floor could not take the weight of five fully grown werewolves. They had respected that the invite – however, forced – had been a sign of good faith and would respect that in this place and in this time, Sebastian was not to be harmed until I gave the word.

"Are you hurt, my dear?" Esme asked me when she entered and approached with Carlisle at her side. I shook my head. She placed a hand on my shoulder and took in my ruined shirt.

"What is it with you and ruining your clothing?" She smiled.

"I wish I knew." Alice scowled.

"Hey?" I touched Alice's arm as she went to pass me and she stopped. "You didn't see him coming?" I nodded to Sebastian.

"Jacob and Leah were too close by. I can hardly ever see when they're kind are involved." She said. "I'll keep an eye on him." She said, peeking over at Sebastian who was smiling at us. We both knew he could hear us, we weren't stupid, and I knew when she said she would keep an eye on him she meant his future and any decisions he would make. I thanked her and let her continue to stand by the windows with Jasper at her side. I was not worried, not of him anyway. Not only were there so many of us but we had Kai whom could compel him to speak the truth, Edward whom could read his thoughts and see his memories, Alice whom could foresee – or try to, with the wolves' present – how this would end, Kate's electric shock which I was eager to see used on an actual enemy, and also Jasper, whom could influence Sebastian's mood. I was not worried. Sebastian ought to have been.

"Are you sure he should be left unbound?" Tanya asked me as she eyed him up suspiciously. I had tried my best to convince them of Kai's compulsion and that it would not break until he allowed it to, and Jacob, having been victim to Kai's ability first hand, was the only one to believe it. "Don't misunderstand me, there is no possible way he is able to move without one of us taking off his head but still."

Kai stepped forward and crossed his arms over his chest, looking down at Tanya disappointedly. "I'm insulted you question the strength of my ability."

Tanya, over exaggerating, rolled her shimmering golden eyes and slumped down in the loveseat with one leg folded over the over. "My apology if I offended you, Kai." She said with a smile and he offered one in return. Sebastian moved and all eyes flew to him, but he was only stretching his neck to get out attention. He tried to speak but again found himself silenced, much to his annoyance.

"Sebastian says there's no need to bind him and no need for Kai's influence either. He doesn't want to hurt anyone." Edward huffed from Rosalie's side. Sebastian nodded eagerly at this.

"Doesn't want to hurt anyone?" I exclaimed, "Look at my apartment!" I threw both hands up in the air. "Not to mention you and I were just trying to kill one another."

Edward followed this with a laugh that felt out of place here in this room and coming from him of all people. "Sebastian is saying you threw the first punch and he was merely defending himself. He would also know if you could do him the pleasure of returning his voice as having me repeat the thoughts going through his head is apparently very uncomfortable." Kai looked to me as if I were the one in charge. Knowing he would need his voice back sooner or later I gave an affirming nod and Kai walked forward and flicked his wrist by Sebastian's face. Immediately the tension in his features settled and he broke out into laughter.

"My, my, I must say that was equally as entertaining as it was frightening." He brushed the plaster which still covered his shoulders from his coat and then decided to lose the coat altogether. "Looks like I'm going to be here a while." He sighed, folding it neatly over the back of the couch.

Still, no one spoke. Everyone was on edge and this was something he could very obviously see.

"I don't understand why you are all so defensive. I mean no harm."

"From the looks of things," Carlisle said, mercifully taking everyone's eyes from me. "It doesn't seem as if you and Isabella had a very warm reunion so please forgive us if we fail to believe what you say right away."

"As I said I was defending myself. Plus, where I originate from throwing a punch is how you greet one another."

"He's telling the truth," Edward said.

"About throwing a punch to say hello?" Jacob gasped.

"About meaning us no harm, and being the one to free Isabella."

I met Edward's eyes and could see in them he meant it. A part of me refused to believe it as I knew by now thought, emotions and memory could be manipulated and shaped like clay to become anything. I was a prime example of such manipulation. I could not bring myself to trust Sebastian yet but Edward confirming what Sebastian had said that made me spare his life made me realize there was more to this story than any of us truly knew.

I moved across the room and folded my arms before him. "Okay. Now everyone has arrived I think it's time for some answers. Don't you?"

"Isabella, don't be so rude!" Sebastian chimed in. "Introduce me to your new friends."

"Sebastian, you know who they are." I spat through clenched teeth. He was irritating me now. Being in the dark was irritating me. You would think after so many years of one would become familiar with the sensation.

"I know who they are but there is no harm in polite introductions. Humour me. Introduce us."

I was half-tempted to take his head clean off for that alone but I heard footsteps behind me. Eleazar had moved forward. He looked unafraid of Sebastian – and I suppose there was no reason to fear him. Fourteen vampires and five werewolves against one, ungifted immortal. It would take the son of two fools to dare to try and fight. Eleazar held out his hand and beckoned towards himself and the other Denali's to his left.

"My name is Eleazar. This is my coven. My wife, Carmen, and our daughters, Kate, Tanya and Irina."

Sebastian stifled a laugh as he breathed out the word. "Daughters?"

"Yes. Daughters." Eleazar's voice hardened. Sebastian looked across at the girls and they starred daringly back at him. It surprised me to find how similar Sebastian and the three Denali sisters looked. They could have been distant relatives with the same white blonde hair, angular features, and statuesque physiques; the only difference being the clash of red eyes against gold.

"I have not met you before. Nor heard of you. Are you a recent addition to the guard?" Eleazar asked Sebastian as he studied him, his thumb and finger rubbing his chin as if trying to place Sebastian's face. Sebastian shook his head in answer.

"I've been working for Aro on and off for almost six hundred years but have never spent very long in any place Aro and his brothers have chosen to make their home. In truth, I enjoy my position as it requires me to be as far away from them as possible and gives me the opportunity to meet those who loathe him as much as I. The enemy of my enemy is my friend, as they say."

Edward's father moved to stand beside his son, taking on the role of leader of this coven. That was one thing I had come to notice about Carlisle; when alone his coven mates were his family and he was their father but in the presence of other, perhaps less friendly immortals, he took on a dominating, protective demeanour. "I've heard of you. You corresponded with Aro during my time with the Volturi."

"I did and of course I had heard of you, Doctor Cullen, but never had the pleasure of meeting you myself until today." Sebastian then held out his long, bony fingers in Carlisle's direction. Carlisle tried – and failed – to hide his disinterest in formalities such as this but ended up nodding and shaking Sebastian's hand anyway. I could sense the others caution, feel Jasper's influence as it washed over the room and sunk into everyone. A calming effect, a peaceful notion.

"Aro had hoped one day you would come to make the fourth member of his brotherhood but word says you were uninterested in the position."

"That's correct. I did not believe in what the Volturi stood for and could not bring myself to follow Aro."

"Still, Aro was always so fascinated by you. He considers you a dear, dear, friend. There are portraits of you throughout the halls of Volterra – or there were before Isabella's creation." He focussed his attention back to me. "He didn't want any reminders of your past life around to confuse you should Kai fail at his task."

"Yes, well, we can see he clearly did not." Changing the subject, Carlisle turned to the other Cullen's. "My wife, Esme, and my children; Emmett, Rosalie, Alice, Jasper, and Edward."

No one deigned to offer Sebastian a hint of a smile.

"Pleasure is all mine," Sebastian replied with a dip of the chin, before standing and turning to face the werewolves.

"You must be the wolves? Can't say I know much about you other than that."

Sam stood before the others and looked outraged. "My name is Samuel. I am the leader of this Pack. This is my Beta, Jared. And this is Jacob and Leah."

Sebastian's ruby eyes flickered to Jared, Leah, and Jacob. "What a very small pack you have."

Sam glared but it was Leah who replied in the sourest voice. "The other members of our pack are back home, protecting our town from your kind."

Sebastian slowly dragged his gaze to the crowd of immortals standing at the other side of the room and snickered. "Well, they aren't doing a very good job." I could hear Leah begin to grind her teeth; Jacob rested his hand on her arm and she did her best to settle. Sebastian rolled his eyes as if bored with them already and pushed off the wall to moved in small steps in the space he was confined in.

"It's a shame, I had been looking forward to witnessing your pack in action. Or at least in your wolf forms. Isabella made you seem quite interesting."

"Make a wrong move and you'll get to see us up close." Jared taunted.

"Okay, enough!" I snapped, slamming my palm into Sebastian's shoulder and forcing him back to his seat. "Answers, now!"

With a defeated sigh, he said. "Where do I start?"

"Start with what you said, considering it is the only reason you're alive right now. You said you were the one to get me out of Volterra. Explain."

"Did the thought ever cross your mind as to why Aro would send you after Victoria in the first place? Why, out of all the places he could have sent you, he would send you to the one town in the world you're likely to run into someone from your past life? Someone who could disrupt and destroy this great lie he had woven together?" He said it like I ought to have and in truth, I should have wondered but in all honesty, my answer was no. I had brushed off my running into the Cullen's as an incredible chance of coincidence but what Sebastian said was true. Aro had gone to a lot of effort to keep this secret from me, why in the world would he send me here? Before I could ask, he continued.

"It's because he didn't. Aro did not send you here."

At this, I frowned. "He gave me a list of the names of the vampires he wanted me to take out. Victoria's name, as well as Forks, was written on that list in his handwriting. He handed the list to me himself."

"He may have handed you the list, Isabella, but he did not write it. Aro contacted me a month before he sent you on your mission. He wanted me to gather information on those on the list; their names, ages, when they were turned and who by, their last known location, any known extra abilities, the reasoning behind their death sentence that kind of thing. In your mind, you had been travelling the globe killing Aro's enemies for centuries but in truth, this was your first true mission beyond the walls of Volterra and he was very excited to see the results. This may come as a surprise to you but there is someone within the walls of Volterra who cares about you enough to go through a great deal to help you discover the truth and escape. I was contacted by this person who wanted my help in getting you out of there. They would make you believe Aro had sent you after Victoria by forging his handwriting and adding her name to the list and it was my job to gather intel on her and make it believable. Aro had no clue you knew of Victoria at all."

"Who?" Kai asked before I could. "Who in Volterra would want to help Isabella escape?"

It was a question I struggled to answer myself. I saw the faces of every guard member, every wife, and every human subjugate. I tried to find someone I could believe would do that for me. It made me feel somewhat guilty. I hated every single one of those pieces of shit but to find out one of them was risking their lives to help me discover the truth about myself overwhelmed me with ridiculing guilt. Had I really been so blind to those around me, the immortals I had called family? Was it possible some of them had truly come to respect me not our of fear but out of admiration?

"I wish I knew but I was contacted anonymously-"

Rose laughed, "How convenient."

"He's telling the truth," Edward said, staring deep into Sebastian's eyes as if searching for any trace of a lie.

"I knew it was a risk, taking this person up on their offer. For all I knew it could have been a test of my loyalty but I took the risk and it paid off."

"But why?" I exclaimed, "Why would you take the risk to help me escape? If what you say is true, then we had never met before we set off for London."

"Because believe it or not, I loathe Aro just as deeply as any of you. If not more so."

"I find that hard to believe. You were asking after his well-being the night we met."

Sebastian's face hardened and he took on an expression I had yet to see him take. Ever. In real life or memory. His features were sharper somehow, his blood red eyes deepening, his usual smirk vanished and was replaced with a fine, angry line. "And if you had told me he was dead I would have rejoiced and made my way back to Volterra to dance on his ashes. I despise that man."

"Why?"

"Aro and his brothers tortured my mate, then burned him alive." That rage dispersed and he allowed himself to smile again, but this time it too was a smile I had never seen before. An honest one, there was no malice behind it nor mockery. He was smiling at a memory of something – or perhaps someone. "His name was Archibald." Sebastian then hinted at a smile my way. "My Archie. A human subjugate who had been working for the Volturi since he was only a boy of fifteen. I met him when he turned twenty and the two of us fell in love. One day I approached Aro and asked his permission to turn my love and Aro allowed it. I returned to Archie after my trip only to discover Aro had tortured and killed him as a test to my loyalty."

"I'm so sorry," Esme said, voicing aloud the very same sentiment going through my head. Still, even after how far I had come it would still have felt weak to give my condolences to him.

"Why are you still working for him. How can you still be working for him?" Alice asked.

"It was my only choice. When I was brought to the throne room the night I discovered what he had done to Archie, Aro was waiting for a reaction out of me. I suppose he had been questioning my loyalty beforehand and this was a test. If the death of my love drove me to try and kill him then he would have had me beheaded and burned right then and there. But I am not a stupid man. Of course my instincts told me to do whatever I could to hurt him, to bring him pain like no one had ever experienced in the history of this earth, but I knew I would not have made it across the throne room before my life would be taken and along with it, my shot at revenge. So I remained calm, angry, but calm and Aro spared my life, believing my loyalty to be strong. In truth, I have been waiting a long time to enact my revenge and when I was contacted by your anonymous admirer, I knew I had found the perfect opportunity to bring about the start of his downfall."

It was a lot to process. I had to think. Unlike Victoria who's drive for revenge fuelled her every action, Sebastian had chosen to take things slow and wait for the perfect opportunity to avenge his love. I found myself wondering how much more there was to Sebastian than met the eye. Before all of this I had believed Kai to be just as monstrous and deadly as I when in truth, he was a kindred soul trapped in this place only he put on a mask and pretended to enjoy it because he thought it was what made me happy. Sebastian, it seemed, was the same. He too had come across cocky and naive and insufferable only to lower his guard and reveal his true, broken self to us.

Then I thought of something – or more specifically, someone.

"What about Daris?" I asked, suddenly remembering the vampire I was positive he was mated too. I had not met Daris in person but had heard tales of Sebastian's lover, the immortal he had been sent to warn of our laws upon becoming one of us, only to find the mating bond click in place upon first laying eyes on the Newborn. A soppy tale, I thought, but one I had believed to be true.

"Daris?" Sebastian scoffed, pacing across the room to stare through the window at the town. "Daris was not my mate. He was a lover, a plaything I enjoyed on many a lonely night but there was nothing more to it than that."

"It was my mistake," Kai spoke up, stepping forward. "I did not know you well during our time together as members of the Volturi; you were very rarely there. What I did know, however, was that you had found a mate. The last we had spoken was decades before when Daris was still a part of your life, so I naturally assumed you had taken him as your mate and implemented that knowledge, albeit false knowledge, into Isabella when the time came for me to change her."

"I'm sure Aro would have loved that. To discover you believed I was happily mated to someone and being unable to even correct you."

"This is certainly much to take in," Carlisle said. "But on behalf of myself and my family, I would like to thank you. Without you, Isabella may never have discovered who she really was and we may have continued to live our lives never knowing she was alive. You brought her back to us."

Sebastian seemed a little taken back by Carlisle's kind words. I knew I should have been the one thanking him but for some reason, I could not bring myself to do it. There were too many conflicting thoughts and memories, too much happening all at once in spite of the room in my head. Instead, I latched onto another pressing question. "So what are you doing here now? How did you find me? I mean, it's not hard to guess where I would go but still…"

"Well, when you ran the news of your betrayal spread impressively fast. Within twenty-four hours every vampire this side of the globe had heard of your escape. Aro tried to keep things quiet, he didn't want his own allies – let alone his enemies – hearing of this failure but you know how things are. People talk. I was in the Atlantic when it happened – I hadn't expected you to leave so soon."

"You knew, didn't you?" I asked. "When we stopped at the hotel in Seattle, and when we returned to Volterra. You knew I hadn't killed Victoria. That I'd figured something out."

"I'd guessed, and hoped but my suspicion was proven true when I heard the news. Aro sent Jane and her brother to find me, to question me on what had happened during your time away and I told them the truth. After they left and I was alone, I knew I needed to find you. It wasn't long before I heard you were being followed in the Middle-east. So, naturally, I went searching for you there only to find the small armada Aro had sent after you were following a scent trail I could not detect."

"That would be Kai. He led the entourage in search of me but knew I would eventually come to Forks. So, he compelled them to believe they had found my trail and were following it in the opposite direction to where he knew I'd be."

"I'd assumed as such. Then it was just a matter of time of getting there. I waited a few days in Seattle, snooping around as I knew if I went to Forks I would be met with hostility from the wolf pack and upon hearing that a vampire fitting my description had come looking, you and your Kai would take off before I had a chance to explain myself to you."

"He's not wrong," Kai said. "If we had known he was close we would be long gone by now."

"I had to wait until you were no longer in Forks, and then I needed to find out where you were. Your scent is all over Port Angeles so it was difficult to find wherever you were staying. So, I went to the local retailers and it took some digging and some threats-" He glanced over his shoulder at the bedroom door, through which the retailer was still asleep. "But eventually I got this address and voilà!" He threw his arms up and then leaned back against the couch. "But Now I have a question for you. What on earth are you doing here? I mean I knew you would return to the Cullen's but you've been here, what? A month? Longer? You're fools to stay here. The moment Kai's compulsion wears off the guards will inform Aro of your betrayal and you'll have dozen's, if not a hundred, very irritable Immortals coming right here."

"We know that," I said. "And we're planning on leaving but we've been busy."

"With what?"

"I've been practicing to lower my shield. To get my real memories back."

"Ha! Now is hardly the time for it! Your lives are on the line."

"That's not just it. I had literally zero control over my own ability. Mastering it not only gives me a chance of regaining a piece of me long lost but it means my being able to shield the others if it did come to a battle. It would mean giving us a chance."

"You need to go. As soon as you can. Master your shield first if you must but I'm telling you I haven't seen Aro this angry in a long time. He won't forget about this and he won't forgive it."

"We'll leave," I promised him. "We have a week left before we need to move. We'll get our affairs in order and be as far away from Forks before Aro or his men even know they've been played." I assured him.

"Good. Don't tell anyone where you are going and do your best to keep low. Away from the major cities and be sure to cover your scents. Oh, and when you are strong enough try your best to shield anyone you are travelling with always. Dimitri won't be able to track you but anyone else you're with he'll be able to find."

"Shit." I hadn't of thought of Dimitri. We were fortunate he had not been a part of the group Aro had sent out with Kai in search of me. Dimitri was a gifted tracker. He could focus on the essence of an individual's mind and find them anywhere on Earth. The idea of having to keep my shield out at all times frightened me – the sheer willpower it would take to accomplish it? But looking around at the faces of my new family made me realise there was no doubt in my mind I could do it. Not if it meant keeping them safe.

"Don't let him find you."

I nodded. "I won't."

"So now you know the truth. I really don't mean you or anyone here any harm. I'm rooting for you. I have been for a while." I wanted to thank him but with everyone's eyes on me, it felt the pressure was too much. I did not want it to be forced so instead I bit my lip and nodded to him. It seemed that was all the thanks he needed. "I had better leave. I told my men I'd be back before dark."

"Wait, you're leaving?" I demanded as I shot to my feet and grabbed his arm to stop him reaching for his coat. "Why? Stay here."

"Stay?" He laughed.

"Yes. Stay. You don't need to go back to him. The more people we have the better chance of survival."

"I must return."

"Why?"

"Because there is no guarantee that if I openly betray the Volturi that Aro will meet his demise. I can't risk him discovering I was the one who opened you up to all of this. I have hope in you all but I am being realistic. Aro is far more powerful and has a great deal more at his disposal than you do. I hope it doesn't come to it but if there is a battle the odds of you winning are not in your favour. If I did so and I died without seeing Aro fall? It would be failing Archie. I don't care what happens to me afterward, but until Aro is gone I need him to believe he has my unwavering loyalty."

Jared snorted from across the room. "Good to know he's faith in us."

"I have faith. I do. But I know just how difficult it is going to be to get out of this. For all of you. There is a war coming and you better be ready when it arrives."

* * *

The others said their goodbyes to Sebastian. Some barely spoke a word whereas others such as Kai and Alice and even Jacob engaged in full conversations with him which mostly consisted of their thanking him for returning me to them. I could tell Sebastian felt awkward in this situation so I hurried him along and soon it was just the two of us headed down the flight of stairs and out into the street. Instead of stopping there where the others could surely still hear us, I set off walking down the road and Sebastian followed close by. The sky had darkened and was now a deep midnight blue; the rain had ceased to lighten up since the storm that morning which meant that by now the dips in the road were filled with water that splashed up at us whenever a car sped on by. In the white glow of headlights, Sebastian seemed almost translucent.

"Sebastian," I said, speaking up for the first time since we left the apartment.

"Yes?"

"I want to apologise and thank you. Apologise for attempting to kill you and thank you for what you did for me. I understand you did it because it was your chance at revenge but my gratitude still stands."

"I did not only do it for revenge. It's true we had never met before Aro sent you to me but I knew of you. Every member of the Volturi guard does. I did not know you but I did pity you. I was glad to have the opportunity to enact my revenge and free you at the same time." The Isabella I had once been would have torn off his lips for daring to say he pitied me and though today I still did not like to hear it, it was not hard to understand why. There I had been, meandering about the place, throwing commands and orders here and there like I ran it when in reality I was nothing more than a piece of entertainment. An experiment. Like when a child acted out a wild story conjured by their imagination and the older adults would play along for the fun of it, as to not ruin the child's silly little game.

Again, I felt that rage bubbling up within. Sebastian was right. Aro would pay one way or another. One day. For his sins against everyone.

"So, what will you do now?" I wondered as we turned the next street and darted around a couple of women hurrying by, giggling beneath their ruined umbrellas. I only now remembered I was still in a cardigan, leggings and was walking down the street barefoot. I must have looked insane. As to not draw attention to myself further, I stepped beneath the shelter of a store roof and leaned into the shadows.

"I'll return to Seattle, inform my men that from what I've seen the Cullen's haven't a clue about you and that neither you not your scent can be found. They'll believe me because they're my men and they would be stupid not too. We'll probably leave, travel some more. I still have work to be done for Aro so fortunately, I won't need to return to Volterra for a long, long time."

"Hopefully by which we will all be a great deal safer than we are now."

"Let us hope."

Sebastian went to move but I reached out to grab his arm. For a second I considered hugging him but I doubted hugs were things neither of us really felt comfortable with. So, I nodded to him. "I am sorry about what happened to Archie. I can't imagine what you're going through."

Sebastian tilted his head and looked to the sky and I watched as his soaking wet hair covered his face and a smile could be seen on his lips. The way he smiled at the darkening sky and at the few stars that fought to shine through the clouds, you could say he was looking straight into the eyes of his mate. They were, for the first time ever, humble and loving and broken all at the same time.

"I hope you never have to. Keep him close, Isabella. Keep him close."

* * *

Asher's Note: Well, well, well. Look who's back haha. It's me, by the way. I did post a small author's note giving everyone a little insight into why I was away so long and I just want to say thank you to everyone who has been patient, who has given me kind words and helped me through the shit storm that has been my life this past year. It means a hell of a lot to me.

This chapter has taken a long, long time to write. I could have posted it earlier than now but in truth, I wanted to wait until I was in a clear head to go back over it and make sure what's happened to me hasn't affected the way in which I write. It may still not be top notch but I think it will do for what it is.

This chapter starts off immediately where the last chapter finished. If you cannot remember, the last chapter ended with Isabella opening her door to find Sebastian waiting for her. (Sebastian being a Volturi Guard member) In this chapter, Isabella immediately believes he is there to take her back or kill her so does what she can to try and take him out first only to later discover he is there to help her and he was in fact the one to help her discover the truth about who she really is.

Again, thank you and I hope to update again soon.

* * *

Responding to your reviews.

GoddesofDawn: Hi, thank you for reviewing! So sorry for the long wait, your review seemed as if you were re 6ally anticipating the next chapter and I feel awful for how long it has taken! Again, thank you for your kind word and I hope you enjoyed.

Traceybuie: Hello! Long-time no see! As for your input on the length of my chapters, I thank you very much. It is probably best to write until I feel the chapter needs to end no matter how short or long that may be. Yeah, it was a weird scene to write. Kai was in a tremendous amount of pain but he knew if he could hold it then it would inspire Isabella to really try and protect him with her shield and it worked. Plus, he has been through much worse. About Edward leaving the room, I feel the same way. I was going to have Isabella look up and Edward smile at her hinting that he was slowly coming around to the idea of her being with Kai but I thought of how much more dramatic it would be if Edward just quietly left. Also, I don't think Edward could accept. Not so soon, anyway. There is so much more to happen with Edward, Isabella, and Kai that will change them all in so many ways. I had a nice holiday, thank you and I hope you have been well.

Child of dreams: *Breaks through the wall like Cool Aid Guy* "Oh Yeah!"

Hopestreet: Thank you very much for reviewing, Hopestreet. I hope you've been well. That was what I intended with the end of the last chapter, to have the readers wondering if Sebastian was a friend or foe but as this chapter shows, he is here as a friend, despite the start to this chapter ha-ha. I am so sorry for the long wait but I am eagerly awaiting your thoughts on this chapter!

Kristie20: Hello Kristie20! I did reply to your review through private message but as I did not receive a reply, I am not sure if it went through so I shall post a response here just in case. Of course, I remember your review and I am so relieved you found me! Thank the God's for Pokémon, then, right? Ha-Ha. Do not worry about blabber or long reviews, I love them! I know it has been a long, long time since I updated but here is the next chapter and I shall be updating more regularly now, I hope!

Goldielover: Thank you so much. I hope this chapter somewhat makes up for the long wait and if not, I shall try my best to ensure the chapters to come are better. I hope you enjoyed and thank you again.

Alice: Only saw a letter '3' on your review. Not sure if it's some cool sign for something I don't know but thanks anyway :')

GracefulKlutz1983: Hello There and thank you. Yes, RL has certainly taken its toll on me this year but in the words of Florence and the Machine, it's always darkest before the dawn. Thank you for your advice. I have been writing but not fiction. Mostly writing down journal entries because that helps but perhaps putting my feelings to use through Isabella will help too. Thank you so much.

~Asher~


	25. Chapter 25

~ Isabella's POV ~

* * *

"What's wrong?" I asked Edward when I looked up to meet his eyes. They were bright and gold and full of worry. He spared a moment to think about his response before leaning forward and resting his arms on his knees. The sleeves of his burgundy sweater were rolled up to his elbows; Edward had hairy arms, I noticed.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" He replied, "Because I certainly don't."

With a roll of my eyes, I leaned back into the cushion of the sofa and folded one perfect leg over the other. "Of course, this isn't a good idea, this is a terrible idea, but we have no other choice." That was not necessarily true, we had Kate. Admittingly, I was curious as to exactly how excruciating the pain of Kate's electric shock was but not curious enough to risk losing my arm. Kai's arm had been a marred mess of spider-web like cracks by the time I had managed to shield him five days prior; any longer and I had no doubt it would have detached from his shoulder like crumbling stone.

But I needed to work on my shield. Not expanding it, that much I'd proudly mastered – it was lowering it I needed to tackle now. Hence the bronze haired immortal sitting across from me. Kai, who was spending this time scowling at the back of Edward's head from across the room, had not been too thrilled when I'd entertained the idea of having Edward try to read my mind as I worked to lower my shield. At least that way we would know if it was working without immense searing pain coursing through my body at the same time; though it did sound by far more comfortable than the idea of having Edward pry into my thoughts.

Never had anyone invaded my privacy this way, not Edward nor Aro – and Kai had only ever caught a glimpse when erasing Bella Swan from existence and creating me and here I was about to let Edward read my thoughts like an open book. I did not know how his family could stand it, their blatant lack of privacy around him. I would be forever on edge.

I tried to imagine a world in which my shield didn't exist, and the thought made me shudder.

"Let's get this over with," I told him, leaning forward to take the book he had placed on the coffee table earlier that day. The book was, in fact, a photo album, the very same photo album Edward had swiped from Charlie Swan's home the day of my interrogation. Edward had once again borrowed it to aid us in our training; I was to pick a photograph at random and try to focus on the details before me as I lowered my shield and it would be Edward's job to try and identify the photo from the images in my head.

I flipped the black pages of the book, unreasonably careful as my fingers caressed the photos that showed the story of Bella's life. I supposed that for Charlie – and probably Edward, before discovering the truth – these photographs were all they had left of Bella Swan. They meant everything. It made sense why Charlie kept this on his coffee table and placed it on his bedside table every night, according to Edward.

"Picked a photo?" Edward's voice was a welcome distraction from the depressing train of thought I was taking.

"Yes." I lied, then picked whatever photo was on the page before me.

"Well…when you're ready." I nodded but needed a moment to think. I hadn't had much hope when Kai had explained to me the mechanics of this part of my mind – it was as if he were asking me to pour all my strength into not pushing but _lifting_ until the built-in, internal shield which guarded me always moved. It sounded just as difficult as I imagined it would be but the little hope I did have had sprung from the success of my expanding my shield nearly a week ago. It had taken everything I had possessed but I had accomplished what should have taken me decades to learn in no time at all. I knew I could do this.

I sat upright and manoeuvred the book so Edward could not see the page, and then when I was ready, I reached within and searched for the walls of my shield. It was not difficult to find and listen to the part of it that protected me. The automatic instinct to preserve self above all else. What was more challenging was convincing that part of me to rise, to unveil itself to the world. After thirty long and agonizingly frustrating minutes, just as my patience began to wear thin, I felt a twitch of movement and an empty, almost numb space appear. Edward's eyes lit up and I knew he had felt it. _Seen_ it. I strained to push it away from me; it captured all my focus, but I felt the empty space between it and my mind grow; could sense the elastic try to recoil as it fought to protect me.

"Something's happening?" Kai asked, presumably noticing the change in my expression.

" _Shhh_!" Edward hushed him, dismissing Kai with a wave of his hand but I knew the reasoning behind it. Listening to their voices and concentrating on what they were saying would distract me and I would lose my already unsteady grip. Knowing I needed to act quick, I focused on the photograph and zoned in on specific details, letting them flood my mind and hopefully his as well; I focused on the alphabet magnets on the refrigerator behind young Bella, then on the pimple on her chin, the fact one shoe-lace was undone, the frozen flicker of a flame on the candle atop the white chocolate cake she held in her thin arms.

Edward's chuckle broke my concentration and I felt my shield snap back into place with a searing sting, one which made me physically wince and recoil. "You could see the photo?" I asked as I tried to hide my discomfort.

He nodded, looking at me with wonder. "Bits and pieces." He said.

"Well, it's a start," I responded.

"But I know enough of the photograph to recognize it's a photo of Bella on her birthday." He was right. The photograph was that of Bella on her fourteenth birthday – from the number of candles in the cake – and from the looks of things, the attention had not been something young Bella had craved. Something gave me the impression that lack of interest in being in the spotlight was not something she ever grew out of.

"Pick another." He told me and I did as he instructed. Flipping the pages, I tried to find a photo that captured my attention and truth be told, I could have chosen any of them but I was curious as to what would entertain me and after a few moments, I found one. I turned the page again and found myself frozen as I came to face with the picture of a woman and I knew immediately she was Bella's mother. She looked like Bella – or rather Bella looked like her. The same shaped face, hair similar in colour and length save for a few inches; the only significant difference were the eyes of clear, sky blue. Obviously, Bella had inherited her brown from her father. There was something in the look the mother gave to the camera or the person behind it that sang with joy. Whenever this was taken, whatever the circumstances the photo came about, Bella's mother was happy. Considering Charlie was with Sue Clearwater and the mother lived in Jacksonville, her happiness had not lasted.

"I'm not getting anything," Edward said, capturing my attention.

"Sorry, I wasn't focusing." I then flipped the book. "Tell me about the mother." I had been unsure of whether or not to refer to the woman as _her_ mother or _my own._ Biologically this woman had given birth to me, I had fed from her breast and slept in her arms and her face was probably the first this face saw. I felt a new and unfamiliar pull to this woman as if suddenly she meant the world to me. An echo of Bella's thoughts on her, perhaps?

Edward licked his lip and smiled, pointing to the photo he said, "Her name is Renée. Bella lived with her and Renée's husband, Phil, in Phoenix until Bella was seventeen when she moved to Forks."

"- Because Phil is a baseball player, yes, I know this," I remembered from what they had told me the day of my interrogation. "What I mean is – why? What happened between Renée and Charlie? What does Renée know of what happened to her daughter? What…what is she like?"

Edward looked at Kai for an unknown reason. I wondered if he was considering arguing and was going to insist we continue with my training but instead he told me what I wanted to know. "Renee and Charlie fell in love here in Forks when they were young. Charlie purposed early into the relationship and Renee, ecstatic with the whirlwind romance they had, said yes. At first, your mother enjoyed the novelty of being married; and living in this quaint, quiet little town. Their relationship only bloomed when she discovered she was pregnant with you. However, after a few months, everything started to get stale. There was no adventure left in their relationship and though she loved Charlie, she was no longer happy. Having you made things better but she could not bear to have you grow up in such a gloomy, miserable place so she decided to leave with you and get her life in order."

"That's miserable," I noted.

"It's sad, yes," Edward said. "Your mother loved your father but that wasn't enough for them to be together."

"Sometimes that's the way it's meant to be," Kai mumbled just loud enough for us to hear. His eyes were on the photograph of Bella's mother. "One thing I have observed in humans is that they have the capability to fall unconditionally in love in such a short space of time. And you would think a love like that is meant to last forever but that isn't always the case. Sometimes people are meant to fall in love and meant to separate – it's sad and painful but it's meant to happen so all parties involved can learn and grow from their experience, to be prepared to face love again in the future when it is right."

A long pause of silence followed these words. I made a mental note to punch Kai for that later. "Well, this got deep and awkward fast," I said, earning a laugh from both boys.

Edward, thankfully, continued on with what he was saying and chose not to acknowledge the tension in the room. "The rest you know, you grew up in Phoenix until you moved here at seventeen. Only my family and the Pack know the truth about what happened to you. Or what we believed to be the truth at the time. We covered up your death as a horrible highway accident. That is what I remember, anyway." A hint of accusation in his voice. Kai sighed, obviously tired of petty comments, and moved to sit on the arm of the couch.

"Don't you think it's time we let that go, Edward?" Kai teased with humour in his voice. "I returned you and your families memories."

"After hiding them," Edward muttered with a roll of his eyes.

"When Aro had me erase the memories of your kidnapping and replace them with memories of your fake death-" He said, facing me again. "By the hands of Victoria, he also asked me to make it so the Cullen's would handle the particulars upon returning to Forks and not realise that their actions were by command and not of their own free will."

"We forged death certificates and created our own scene of the accident with half-destroyed cars. I don't know if there ever was a body. In my memories…" Edward paused and looked down at his hands. He was squeezing his fingers tightly. I imagined they would be shaking if his nerves could betray his body. "In the memory Kai gave me, I only see your body, drained of life by Victoria. I see it perfectly in my head. I remember smelling your blood and knowing there was too much of it tainting the air for you to still have any left running through your veins."

"I'm sorry," Kai said, not to me but to Edward. "I needed to make the memories convincing."

Edward refused to acknowledge Kai's apology through the words he had said or the guilt in his amber eyes. He just gave a slight nod of the chin to demonstrate his understanding that what had happened to us all had been just as out of Kai's control as it was my own. "She visited your grave here many times-"

"Wait…I'm buried here?" I asked. "Well, the fake me that doesn't exist was buried here?"

"Yes, I suppose it's an empty casket buried in the ground now but yes. Your mother believes the same as your father and the rest of the humans you were involved with. She spent a long time in Forks, finding it difficult to part from where you were buried." I thought about what it must have been like for Edward at the funeral, a victim to Kai's terrifyingly convincing compulsion. Not only did he remember seeing my dead body, but he could probably smell it. He could smell Bella's decaying body when it did not exist. I thought about that for a moment, the horror behind it and it made even me shiver.

"Okay, I think that is enough of this, for now. We need a break," I announced to the room, springing up to stretch my legs without needing too if only to do something.

"We've barely scratched the surface of what you are capable of doing if we put in the time," Edward argued, following me with his eyes as I crossed the room to peer through the window. The skies were dark but it was too cold to rain.

"And we will but we have been at it long enough. We may be immortal, but we do deserve breaks."

I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket at the same time it pinged. We all frowned as I dug my fingers into my jeans to hook it out. It was a burner phone. My actual phone was switched off and disabled as to not be tracked by the Volturi. The only people who had this number were the people who lived in this very house and Jake.

The answer to the question on all our minds was answered when I read the message. "It's Sebastian," I told them, and Edward and Kai looked up. "No idea how he got this number, but he is just letting me know he's left Seattle and taken his men with him. He's also sent off a few of the look-outs waiting in the city in case we need to get a flight out of the country instead of moving on foot."

A sense of relief washed over me. Sebastian had done what he could and rid the city of Aro's lookouts but this by no means meant we were safe, and that was something I had to keep reminding myself. Sebastian had come to us as a friend, an ally but if he had come with more violent intent then we would have been in trouble. No one, not even Alice who could see in the future, had seen Sebastian's arrival. No one had realised we were even close to being found until he knocked on my door. It could have been a disaster.

I looked across the room towards the front doors and saw, waiting right where I had left it, was a large black duffel bag. In which our essentials were hidden. Passports, driving licences, birth certificates; all forged of course. Though the millions of dollars' worth of rolls, credit cards and jewellery stashed away in there were as real as could be. After what had happened with Sebastian, I wasn't going to risk it anymore. We had to be prepared to leave at at moment's notice. For all we knew, the Volturi could have been charging through Forks right that second and we would be none the wiser. We had to be prepared.

The other Cullen's bags were piling up in the foyer too. Kai and I weren't the only ones preparing for the worst.

It saddened me to know that they were abandoning the lives they had made for themselves here in Forks to travel with me and keep me safe. I knew, of course, I was not the only reason for their departure; Aro, outraged at Kai and I's betrayal, would surely find some way to punish the Cullen's despite the fact they would have been just as in the dark as they day Kai stole their memories if it hadn't had been for me – well, Sebastian and this mysterious hero who had aided him in my rescue and lead me to my discovery of the truth.

I had thought hard during my free time about this individual but could not for the life of me wonder who it could have been. I knew every member of my guard, some better than others, of course, and although several of them were less monstrous than they had let on, I doubted any of them would have cared enough about what I – or Bella Swan, specifically – had been through to attempt to help me. And, for argument's sake, this individual had met and befriended Bella before I came along, why wait almost three years before doing anything about it?

"Do you hear that?" Kai asked. I spun, facing him.

"Hear what?" Edward replied but he hadn't needed too as we both caught on.

From beyond the windows, I heard a sound, a deep rumble. "Thunder?" Kai guessed. I knew thunder and that wasn't it. The sound was distant but enough within range for me to easily recognise it. The continuous booming of footsteps. I was on my feet and whistling out of the back doors at a speed which could have shattered the glass panelling.

Just as I reached the bottom of the Cullen garden where the river divided their lawn from the forest beyond, a small, hooded figure landed on the balls of their feet, facing away from me. My hands were balled into fists, my eyes locked onto their every move. I was prepared to kill but as the figure spun and dropped their hood, I loosened my shoulders.

His familiar scent hit me less than a second later. "Jasper?" I exclaimed, storming forward. He glanced over his shoulder at me and smiled the brightest I had ever seen, but his attention was quickly diverted by Emmett who appeared out of nowhere and reached for his brother but missed when Jasper ducked under his arm and struck a low but hard blow to Emmett's gut, sending the larger of the two – and the one you would place your bets on to win the fight – rolling back down the incline into the forest with a thunderous crash. That explained the thunder.

"Isabella." Jasper greeted me, wiping down his mud-strained palms on his black hoody.

"What on earth are you doing?" I asked although had already guessed the answer. They were sparring. Jasper didn't have time to answer as Emmett burst from the thicket, bounding up the incline in a blur, kicking up giant mounds of dirt and earth in his wake. I took a step back as to avoid the collision but still felt it as Emmett tackled Jasper to the ground and sent the two crashing towards the house.

"Training. Care to join?" Jasper yelled from somewhere in the tumble. Emmett threw a punch Jasper avoided by ducking his head. Emmett's fist destroyed the stone step leading to the porch in shattered pieces of stone. Edward let out a long whistle. "Isabella will have to get in line because Esme is going to kill you."

Distracted by his brother, Emmett was knocked back a couple of feet by Jasper's foot. With a flip, he was back on his feet with his hands up though his eyes were on me. "Well?"

I realised he was waiting for my answer. "Of course! Who's first?" I beckoned them forward. Edward sniggered and strolled forward with a little-added swagger I made a promise to knock off.

"I don't think that's a good idea. You could get hurt." Kai called from the back of the house. He and Edward leaned together, a little too close for my liking, against the wooden railing, watching with wild curiosity.

"Don't worry, she'll be fine!" Emmett waved off the comment. Edward, Kai and I exchanged a look and laughed aloud, the sound somewhat beautiful.

"What?" Emmett yelled back, not taking his eyes off me as I walked confidently over to meet him. Emmett knew what I could do, he'd experienced it first-hand the day we met when I escaped this very house. I'd fought them all and he'd seen the damage I had caused in my escape."

"I was speaking to you." Kai laughed. Emmett caught on, took one look at me and rolled his eyes.

"Pfft! _Please_."

I arched a brow.

"And to think I was going to take it easy on you."

"Give me all you got."

And for that comment, I did.

* * *

"Okay, Uncle, _Uncle_!" Emmett roared at the top of his lungs, punching my arm to get my attention.

"What? Admitting surrender already?" We had been fighting for an hour. "Pathetic." I released Emmett from the grip I had him in and he hit the dirt hard. The grip had been one in which I held his already cracked neck in my arms. One twist and it would've popped right off. Emmett tried to shrug it off with a laugh, but I'd genuinely frightened him. I wondered if, for a second, he'd considered if I was truly going to decapitate him. It wouldn't mean certain death but still, no one likes to lose their head. Not to mention a head is harder to reattach successfully than a limb is.

"Got to say, Isabella, I'm impressed," Jasper said, pushing off from the tree he'd leant against to watch the round.

"I know my stuff." I brushed off my shoulders smugly.

"That she does," Kai mumbled, shaking his head from side to side in slight awe of me. I gave a little bow. I took great pleasure in putting Emmett Cullen in his place – not that he was much of a challenge anyway. He relied solely on brute strength which admittingly played an important part in destroying one's enemies, but the real skill came in one's ability to think critically, trust their instincts and then deliver a solid, killing blow.

"I want a rematch." He demanded, pointing to the centre of the clearing. "The moment my neck heals." He added, rubbing it. Edward laughed, and Emmett flipped him off.

"I thought you would, but do you think your pride could take it so soon?"

He bit his lip and imitated backhanding me.

"Try it and I'll snap that hand off and shove it right up your-"

"What's going on here?" Rosalie laughed as she and several of the others approached from beyond the house. They had returned at the best time. In the early afternoon light, Rose looked radiant. Her hair resembling actual gold as it twisted down one shoulder and into the opening of her fur coat. Her cheeks powdered ever so slightly to resemble a cold blush. The others were similarly dressed, especially the Denali's.

"Emmett's trying – and valiantly, I'll add – to secure his sense of masculinity by beating me in battle." I ruffled his curly, dirt covered locks. "Maybe next time, bud? You did your best."

He slapped away my arm with a curse.

"Aww poor baby," Rose shook off her coat and tied back her hair with a band from her wrist. "Might as well stroke his ego a little longer. He's a fragile soul." And she winked. I stepped back, offering her space and now faced against his mate, Emmett seemed eager to get back into it. He dropped into a squat with his giant arms out as Rosalie pounced him with half a battle cry, half laughter.

It wasn't long before the other Cullen's and Denali's returned home and decided to train alongside us. And before I knew it, Jacob had shown up and invited the pack to train too. It was interesting to watch the wolves train with us. When I'd first encountered them in the woodlands my first night here in Forks, I'd been truly intrigued by their capabilities as these beasts and although I'd come to care for them I still found myself anticipating the outcome of a fight.

The fights that included the wolves were more brutal than a fight between two of my own kind. We immortals always displayed a picture of grace and fluidity, even in the middle of battle. Our movements were elegant and calculated, precise; the wolves though were savage. Cracks and booms echoed throughout the clearing as ancient trees snapped between the weight of Paul as Irina threw him against it. He was back on his feet and snapping at her throat with his large canines in second, being held back only by her hands lost in the shag of his neck. One might think they were actually trying to kill one another.

Well, it was Irina and Paul.

Edward and I exchanged a glance and I wondered if he'd had the same thought. Though I needn't worry. Surely, he'd intervene if he read she was preparing the killing blow.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking."

Edward smirked. "I don't know. What _are_ you thinking." A challenge.

I pulled down the walls of my mind – I regretted giving up on our training session so early as it stung to jump straight back into it, but I refused to let it show. I thought of Irina but didn't give it away by looking directly at her. I pictured the way she and Paul fought, the destruction in her eyes. I then imagined what it would be like if she delivered the killing blow. I imagined it in detail and Edward rolled his shoulders, losing his smile.

"You saw?" I gasped, losing my shit for a moment.

"Not enough but I got a good enough image." He responded, chuckling the disturbing thought of Paul's broken, dying body away. "And to answer your question, yes. I was wondering the same thing but I'm listening, keeping an eye on it."

With a huff, Irina shoved Paul off her and leapt to her feet, she stormed away from the clearing, giving Edward and I a dirty look as she went. She'd obviously heard us. I shrugged in her direction as if she could blame me. One look at the others confirmed me they wondered the same.

"Okay," Jasper called. "Who's next?"

The hours passed, and partners changed, each round resulting in more destruction of the forest much to Esme's dismay – apparently, she had been considering building a cosy little cottage in these parts a few years ago but considering all the mayhem, it had never happened – but no one seemed too bothered as we apparently had been progressing, according to Jasper.

Whereas I started to lose interest after the first few rounds, Jasper stood by the edge of the sparring circle with his arms crossed, barking orders at both opponents. He reminded me of a younger version of myself at an earlier point in my non-existent life when I had been the one to train the Volturi's new additions to the guard. These past few years Aro had added several new members which was quite unusual, honestly. Throughout history, Aro had been quite selective when it came to those who wished to – or who was going to anyway – join us. And even then, those lucky individuals were almost always Gifted in some way or he was building back up the guard after a battle.

Or in preparation of one.

In both cases, I had been one of the tutors, if you will. Just as I had lately commanded the guard, I had trained them. I could recall hundreds of hours spent beneath the city and beyond the walls in the middle of nowhere, training Newborn's for days on end to control their strength as well as use it to their advantage, teaching them to listen to their instincts and act upon them in battle, that their newfound enhanced senses would guide them. I had to admit that Jasper knew his stuff. Alice had mentioned to me before of Jasper's experience in this department, but I hadn't realised to what extent. It was mildly impressive.

Leah was mid-battle with Kate and both fought well but it became clear who the winner would be when Leah made a stupid move. Leah didn't bother to think about his next move. She just charged at Kate with a growl rumbling through her chest. Kate stepped aside and brought her knee up into the side of Leah's gut as she skidded to a stop. The blow knocked her off balance and I rolled my eyes as she barrelled past. Before she came to a stop, Kate had her arms wrapped around Leah's throat and pretend to squeeze.

"Dead." She said. Leah threw her off harshly and stormed away.

" _Don't go for the obvious kill!"_ I shouted at the same time Jasper did. He nodded, agreeing with me. I rolled my eyes and jerked their direction with my thumb. "Amateurs, huh?" A laugh followed.

"Why don't you show us something," Tanya questioned as she appeared at my side. What she'd asked captured everyone's attention.

"Excuse me?"

"Jasper is an amazing instructor, but you are just as knowledgeable in battle, are you not? Whether your memories are real or not shouldn't matter if you still know your stuff."

She wasn't wrong. I arched a brow at Jasper, an unspoken question. He stepped back and beckoned to the clearing. "Show us what you got." He said "Again," And at this, my interest had again peaked. As I took to the circle, I pulled off my shirt leaving me in a thin, sleeveless vest top.

"Oh my god." Jacob gasped.

"Calm down boy, that's as far as I'm going. And your girlfriend is right there."

"No." He said, storming over. He snatched up my hand and I realised what he was staring at; what they all were staring at. The scars on my arms.

"How did you get the scars?"

"Oh, all throughout my life. Can't count the number of times in the early days when a lucky newborn would snap at me and-" I stopped myself, realising just what he meant. Looking down at my own marred forearms and up to my shoulder, I frowned. "How _did_ I get these scars?" Kai, knowing I was speaking to him, appeared by our side. He took my arm in his hand and caressed one of the uneven marks forever sliced into my skin by immortal teeth. He looked at each of them individually and each with a heavy sadness in his amber eyes.

Jacob spoke up, his voice fuelled with sudden rage. "Did you give her those scars!" At this, all eyes flew at Kai accusingly, including my own. No, No? He would never, not even…would he?

"Of course not." Kai finally said. "Don't be stupid, wolf. I couldn't do that. But…I was there when you suffered them. Some of them are results of training with other members of the guard, some as punishments for disobeying Aro in the beginning but…but most of them were inflicted solely so I could attach memories to them. Aro wanted you to be experienced in battle and an experienced warrior would not have made it through their long life without a battle scar or two."

"Sick," Jacob muttered. "Scarring you for eternity to make this character he'd imagined more believable? He's demented." He was speaking of Aro.

"That's Aro," I replied with a sigh. My scars did not bother me. I had never really had them on display, but I had never been embarrassed to hide them. As Kai said, they were battle wounds. I could remember each one in my mind, each lucky Newborn that had managed to get their jaw around my arm, each early training session as a Newborn myself. Not even one of those memories were real, not a single scar was inflicted in actual battle.

"Never mind my scars," I said after a few seconds of once again uncomfortable silence. "Back at it! Who's next?"

Needless to say, I showed them all a thing or two about killing. Jasper knew his stuff as I'd discovered earlier that afternoon, but he had been killing a mere one hundred and fifty years. I had been killing that number tenfold. Albeit only in memory but still, it counted. I had the knowledge of over fifteen hundred years of slaughtering humans and immortals alike and that knowledge was indeed helpful.

Although my strategies were much more…savage than Jaspers were. His moves were precise and practised and almost military whereas mine tapped more into our instinctual, predatory nature as vampires, as creatures of destruction and death. I would go over moves Jasper had already covered and offer three alternative killing blows he hadn't even considered the first time around. I introduced ways to evade death by showing them how to twist and bend their bodies in ways they hadn't thought possible. And I knew exactly how to bring your opponent to unbearable pain before meeting a then merciful death.

Just as I finished a demonstration on how to burst your entire arm through a chest and, as you withdrew it, shatter the torso, Kai called out to me. "Isabella? Your Volturi is showing."

"Hilarious," I commented, circling back to the clearing we had made out sparring pit to his side. "Okay, who's next?"

"Me."

Two voices had spoken at the same time. Two perfect voices.

"Alright," Jasper called, "Edward and Kai, you're up." Kai and Edward. Both boys looked taken back by the chances but neither one spoke. No one spoke, in fact, the whole clearing had stopped chatting to listen. Edward and Kai only focused on one another. Kai then stepped towards the ring and looked at Edward. There was a question in the look. No. A challenge. Neither one of them had intended to fight the other but it wasn't as if they could go back on their word now. Not after starting something as spectacular as what was about to follow surely promised to be. Edward answered with a shrug and both boys approached.

"Same rules, first to imitate a killing blow wins," Jasper said. Both boys nodded and kept their eyes locked on the other. No one was smiling.

"This should be fun." Rose sniggered, and I nodded, biting my lip. I lived for moments like this.

"And…Go!" Jasper stepped back and the fight began.

To my surprise, it was Kai who started the fight. He charged at Edward but unlike some of the others was not foolish enough to go for an obvious blow. He dropped left but bounded right, spinning under Edward's arm to come at him from behind but Edward, Edward was swift and was able to drop his back to narrowly avoid Kai's slashing claws. Kai slashed several times before attempting to change tactics, but Edward did not give him the opportunity.

His foot smashed into Kai's chest, the blow sending him skidding across the dirt; a blow powerful enough to hurt but not keep him down for long. Edward knew that if Kai found his footing then it would've made it harder for him to take the advantage and in knowing this he wasted no time in throwing everything he had at Kai.

"Edward's fast," I said, folding my arms. "I knew he was but it's an advantage in battle."

"Sure, he's fast." Emmett murmured, watching intensely. "But Edward's cheating," Emmett said accusingly, taping his temple. I realised he was right. Edward could read the other thoughts; had no need to anticipate Kai's moves when he could see him deciding what move to make before making it. It gave him such an unfair advantage and that couldn't stand and I knew what I had to do.

"Let's make this an equal fight, shall we?" I then forced my shield out across the training field. Unlike the bubble I'd created before, I had also worked on selective shielding. Bending and warping my shield to will until I had Kai and only Kai protected; it proved a difficult task as he and Edward moved at such a blinding speed, but it was manageable. The moment I had Kai within my range, I felt his warmth within. Felt a bond between us solidify.

It affected the battle immediately. Edward knew what had happened and although I could see the discomfort at being "Blind" In his features, he failed to let it stop him try and take Kai down. As the battle continued, it was obvious I'd tipped the scales, making this an equal fight. Again, and again both boys were able to get in hard blows and neither one held back. Within minutes both were covered in mud and grass stains, their usually perfect hair was dishevelled, their bodies covered with small, hairline fractures. Edward groaned aloud as Kai pinned his already breaking arm behind his back and, with another twist, cracked it enough to make it useless. Not damaged enough to detach it but enough to make it impossible for Edward to make a fist anytime soon. Using his less dominant hand, Edward could not keep up and it didn't take long for Kai to bring his foot up into Edward's jaw, sending him flipping through the air and into the frozen dirt.

He appeared above him in the blink of an eye, his open palm inches from Edward' throat. "Dead." Kai breathed loudly, almost as if out of breath. A second of unnecessary silence before the others began to applaud. I did the same. Edward glared up at Kai and it angered me, the way he stared at him with such hatred as if he still saw Kai as the enemy in all of this. I went to say something, to yell or scold or something, but before I could Kai dropped to his knee and held out his open hand.

I stopped in my tracks, watching. Edward stared at Kai's hand, puzzled. Knowing immediately what Kai was doing, I dropped my shield to let him in on the know. Kai was offering him a hand. I noticed some of the others exchange a look, a wonder in Jasper's eyes, a curiosity in those of the wolves, a thank you in Esme's.

An idea came to mind and I lowered my shield. Again, it burnt almost but I forced it down and Edward's eyes landed on me. I sent to him the looks on the faces of his family, the look on Kai's face as he waited there patiently for Edward to decide what to do. I could tell what Edward was thinking and I replaced all images in my head with the miserable face of Aro. A reminder. A reminder of who the real enemy was here.

 _Take his hand._ I thought.

And so, Edward did.

"Good fight," Kai said casually as he brushed off Edward's dirty clothes. "And sorry about that." He nodded to Edward's wrist. Already, it was begging to heal. Edward looked at Kai, at me, then back at Kai and smiled.

"Don't worry about it. It was a clever move. I'm not used to fighting blind. Congratulations."

Each was smiling, laughing with one another even and it was the oddest thing. But I knew them both well enough by now to know it could have been worse if it hadn't ended the way it had. Kai stopped, of course, he fought, and he hurt Edward and would have done more if really given the chance, but I knew that when it came down to it he would never have delivered the killing blow, that much I trusted but could the same be said for Edward? I had more trust, more respect, for the bronze haired man standing before me now than I ever imagined possible but a part of me still wondered if he resented Kai still that if given the opportunity he wouldn't seize it and destroy the man that had stolen the heart of _his_ mate. Though I had to remind myself now that Edward had chosen to taken Kai's hand. He'd made that decision it and proved just how far he had come.

"I would have won even without you shielding me," Kai muttered, brushing his now messy hair out of his eyes.

"Of course, you would." I playfully slapped his chest, winked and headed off to the others. All simple chatter had ceased during this time, including the rumbles and huffs of the wolves. Time had stopped for a moment.

"Well…" Rosalie said with a singsong voice, sensing I wanted to the silence to be broken again. "I think there is only one battle left to be had. _The_ battle." I frowned, waiting as she rolled up her sleeves and spun on the spot, pointing at Jacob. "Isn't that right, mutt?" Like everyone else present, I smiled. Jacob, clearly taken by surprise at the invite, shrugged and pulled his shirt over his head.

"Oh, it's on."

* * *

Jacob returned human and clothed ten minutes later, looking unhappy.

"Sore loser?"

"I did not lose, we just…stopped fighting."

I scoffed. "Yeah, when she beat you."

"Rose did not beat me."

"Sure," I nodded, focusing back on the next fight which happened to be Carlisle and Esme.

Jacob looked at me and arched a brow as I smiled up at him. "I said sure!" I laughed. He nudged me with his shoulder and I nudged back harder.

Jake looked down and rubbed his nose, a pathetic attempt at trying to disguise his interest. Did he look angry?

"Come on, Jake, she had the upper hand, don't be yourself up," I said.

At this, he scoffed. "That's not what's bothering me."

"Then what is?" I questioned, not a fan of what was happening. A second of silence. "Jake?" I touched his arm. Almost as if compelled, he rolled his eyes and leaned back against the trunk of the nearest tree. He nodded across the clearing to the pack. Across the battle, I spotted Sam stood on an outlook of rock, watching the battle and, from the way his large glossy eyes flickered back and forth between Paul at the left of the clearing and Leah on the right, he was having a discussion with them. A serious one.

I followed to step beside him, a short way away from the others. A false modicum of privacy. "What's happening?"

"There was a meeting yesterday," He said, looking over my head at the pack on the other side of the clearing. They only shared one mind when in wolf form, so they did not know he was telling me this yet but still, he wanted to be careful of them overhearing. "Between the Pack and our Elders."

"Okay," I said. "Regarding?"

He kicked the dirt at his feet. "This deadline of yours – what'll happen when time runs out."

"You know what's going to happen, Jake. We don't have much time left so we're leaving in a few days. It'll give us plenty of time to put some distance between us and Forks." I shook my head, confused. We'd gone over this. He looked me in the eyes. I looked up and met his eyes, only now seeing the sadness in them. I was right, Jacob was angry. This suddenly mood swing had thrown me off and left me with an uncomfortable cold.

It hit me then. Kai, the Cullen's, Denali's and I would be leaving. Not the pack. Not him.

"Jake-" I said, touching his arm softly. "Is that what this is about? Us leaving? You could come with us, you know. I like you, Jake. I really didn't when we first met but I've come to value your existence in my life. I don't like the idea of you staying behind here, waiting for the Volturi to come."

He scoffed a laugh and dropped his arms, slapping them against his sides. "You don't get it, do you, Bel – Isabella." He bit his lip. "Yeah, I'm worried and want you all safe but we're more worried about what'll happen when you're gone. Not because you won't be here and it'll suck that you're gone but because of that exact reason you just said! The Volturi will come with their army and by the time they do you'll be long gone and it'll be the pack left behind to defend this town and the people in it against Aro when he takes his anger that you're not here out on us."

Jacob's raised voice and the tone he took with me drew others our way. Kai, Edward and Carlisle. Sam too had started to circle the clearing.

"What's going on?" Kai demanded, stepping to my side, his brows furrowed low as he took in Jacob as a whole. I could sense Kai trying to remain as calm as he could but having Jacob aim his frustration at me had angered him also. I touched his arm a moment, a hint to cool down.

"Jacob is, understandably, worried about the safety of the pack when the time comes for us to leave and what'll happen when the Volturi come."

Jacob scoffed and stepped between us as if to storm off but spun back on us. "I'm not worried about the Pack, alright, the pack can handle itself." As if needing to back up Jacob's statement, several wolves rose from their spots on the ground to stand behind him. They towered above him, even in his human form. "I'm worried about Forks and the people in it."

"Aro won't take his anger out on this town out of spite," Kai said.

I thought about it and nodded. "Kai's right. Aro will be angry but he would not risk exposure of our kind by taking it out on the town. Nor would he attempt to eradicate your pack. Your kind interests and frightens him to an extent. He does not fully understand you, nor does he know if there are more out there that could come looking for revenge if he killed you. Not to mention, Caius will want nothing to do with you."

"Okay, so not the town but maybe some people living in it. Not only the pack and the tribe but others. Charlie!"

" _Charlie_." His dark eyes and bushy moustache popped into my head. "Oh my god, Charlie."

"We have to tell Charlie the truth," Jacob said. "We have to tell him you're alive."

"We cannot do that," I argued. "Charlie has been through enough trauma. Introducing him to our world will only bring him more confusion and pain."

"I can guarantee not nearly as much pain as the Volturi will bring him," Edward told me.

"But Aro knows that I do not love Charlie as I once did. Why would his death mean anything to me?" This earned me a few surprised glances. "In the eyes of Aro, obviously."

"That won't stop him. Edward' right" Kai said. "Aro threatened Charlie's life once before as punishment for attempting to escape during our training. If it came to it, I've no doubt he would follow through with it. Whether you care or not."

For an unknown, insane reason I pictured it in my head. Aro showing up at the house. His maniacal grin as Charlie opened the door. One flash was all I needed before I started shaking my head violently. "Cannot happen. He must leave. If Charlie is in town when the Volturi arrive Aro will kill him. If Charlie leaves then his scent will have faded enough to be untraceable by the time Aro arrives."

"And Dimitri?" Esme butted in as she stepped by Carlisle. I hadn't even thought of Dimitri. That weasel had once again escaped by unnoticed in my planning.

"I don't think he would be able to track Charlie. Charlie is shielded – granted, not as securely as Isabella but enough for me to find it difficult to understand his thoughts. I assume it would also throw off Dimitri's ability to track him directly."

"We still got to tell him something." Jacob sighed. "There's no way Charlie will go willingly." He huffed, almost as if we would be stupid to believe otherwise.

"Well," I said, turning to Kai. "He doesn't need to."

* * *

Through the partings in the curtain covering the window, I watched as Sue Clearwater returned to the living room of the Swan residence with a warm mug of coffee in her hands. She spotted me through the window, tucked her long glossy black hair behind her ear and nodded to me. I gave a curt nod in return, a confident nod but inside I was trembling.

Alice appeared at my side. "How's it going?" She was too small to see through the window, but she'd probably already seen everything play out anyway, she was only asking as a courtesy.

"Exactly as we knew it would," I told her.

Sue stepped out of view to sit beside Charlie; he faced away from me, but I could tell, not only by his hunched shoulders but the smell of his blood, that he was nervous. And the man sat in the armchair across from him was probably the reason why. Kai. Almost as if hearing me say his name in my head, he glanced up at me and the corner of his mouth lifted ever so slightly into his true smile. It settled my own nerves.

Kai was here talking to Charlie. He was here…to compel him to leave. We had all agreed it would be the only way to ensure Charlie's safety – and even then, who knew for how long? Alice might be able to see when his life is once again in danger but until then having Charlie leave this town – and the history of it – behind. Kai had been indoors with him for half an hour now, tampering with his free will and bending it to make Charlie believe this was his own idea. And not only that. To make him leave tonight. A little insane to be passed as normal but these were desperate times and desperate times called for desperate measures – not to mention we were running out of time. Issues he might've faced such as his job, his house, could all be taken care off by the Cullen's. They had much experience in picking up and leaving at the drop of a hat.

Sue cried when Sam and Jacob told her the plan. Not because she and Charlie would be apart but because she and her children would be. Being part of the pack meant they were always in danger these days. At any moment an immortal could pass through these parts and take on the pack and as today's training sessions proved, it wouldn't be too difficult to escape alive and with werewolf blood on your hands. Sue did not want to be away from her children, but she could also not bear to have Charlie out there in the world, not in his own mind, alone.

Seth and Leah were surprisingly understanding, though I assumed partly because they knew that their mother had again found love after the death of their father a year ago. From Jacob's stories, it had been a difficult passing on all three of the Clearwater's, but Sue found herself and the strength to carry on in her friendship – soon to be a relationship – with Charlie. I took had to admit she had agreed to leave with him, otherwise, we would have been responsible for destroying that love and when humans lived for as short a period as they do, who knew if it would ever reunite.

No, it was better for them to be together at a time like this. Together and safe. Jasper also mentioned having a contact in Seattle that could provide Charlie and Sue with new identities should they require them – the same anonymous contact that had supplied the Cullen's, Denali's, Kai and I with our own forgeries. I just hoped that until we knew more this was enough to keep Bella's father alive. In a way, I felt as if I owed it to her to ensure it.

Alice and I darted out of view as Charlie, Sue and Kai rose to their feet and went their separate ways without a goodbye. Sue went to the bathroom to dry her tears, Kai headed for the front door and Charlie went upstairs to pack.

"Thank you for doing that," I said to Kai as together we walked along a dirt path leading from the Swan home into the forest beyond.

"Of course," He said, draping an arm over my shoulder. I leaned into it.

It wasn't long before we heard the arrival of Jacob, Leah and Seth, whom both appeared dressed in human form from beyond the trees. Leah refused to acknowledge my presence when I greeted them, undoubtedly blaming me for this despite understanding that her mother was safer this way also.

"Seth," I nodded to him. Seth was one of the youngest Quileute Shifters and he looked it. I had learnt that Shifters age rapidly to adulthood when their wolf gene is triggered but it appeared as if Seth was still only a baby.

"Isabella, how's it going?" He asked, peering beyond me to the house where his mother prepared to leave for who knew how long.

"I am fine, and you?"

"Been better," He offered a weak smile and shrugged off my apologetic look. I knew he didn't blame me, I knew this truly wasn't my fault, but I still couldn't shake the guilt.

"It's for the best." Alice offered and we all returned nods of our own. "They're coming."

A moment later the front door opened, and Charlie and Sue headed for her car. "Here," Charlie said, and he took one of the last bags from Sue and hauled it into the trunk.

"Thanks. Is that it?" She asked.

"No, there's one more by the stairs."

"I'll get it." She told him and kissed his cheek softly before going back inside. Only she exited from the back of the house and waved Seth and Leah over. The two of them rushed to their mother, into her arms. I could hear their tears land on the cold, frozen grass at their feet. Not wanting to intrude on their goodbye, I tried to centre my attention back to Charlie. I leaned in closer and watched as Charlie, having nothing to do with himself but wait, tucked his hands into the pockets of his jeans and rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet, taking in the house that had been his home for most of his life. Despite not knowing the truth about the danger he was in and why he was suddenly leaving this life behind, he looked sad anyway.

I wondered how this would have turned out if we had taken Jacob's advice and told him. I wondered what his reaction would be to the discovery of vampires and Shape Shifters, and the little fact that his daughter lived on to this day only as a brainwashed murderess vampire. Charlie seemed a sensible man, a strong man, but I knew even that was too much for him to bear.

Seth and Lead both returned with red eyes and Sue, with a beautiful but forced smile on her timeless face, loaded the last of the bags into the car before turning to face Charlie. "You ready?" She asked him, wrapping an arm around his waist as he did her shoulder. Together they took in the house a final time.

"I'm ready."

They took another minute of reminiscing before getting into the car.

The moment Sue's car set off down the street I flew from the shadows of the treeline to the middle of the road and watched as it drove away. A risky move considering Charlie only needed to look through the rear window once and he would have seen me standing there but I didn't care. A strange feeling overcame me, a sadness that felt right and out of place all at once. I did not know Charlie Swan but a part of me cared for him deeply, for not only who he was but what he represented, and I knew this was what was best for him.

Kai's hand on my shoulder pulled me from these thoughts. He simply offered a smile and left his arm wrapped around my neck and kissed my temple as we turned and walked away.

* * *

~Asher's Note ~

Hello! Long time no see. I apologise for the long wait for this chapter, but unfortunately, adult life brings with it responsibilities. For those of you still there, here is the next chapter! In this chapter, Isabella begins training on lowering her shield and trains with and tutors the others in battle, reminiscent of the training scene in Eclipse. It ends sadly with our characters deciding to keep Charlie Swan safe from the Volturi's wrath, they have Kai compel him to leave town with Sue until his life is no longer in danger. It was what needed to be done to keep him safe.

I hope to update soon. I always say that, but I truly mean it this time. I have time off work soon and that means plenty of writing to be done. I cannot wait to progress with this story as shortly the pace will pick up. There will be actual battles, lives will be lost on both sides. Cannot wait.

Also, I apologise if there are any reviews I have not responded to below. Being so long since I updated and the fact I included and have since deleted an author note in this story, it has thrown off the way some people leave reviews. Thank you.

* * *

Responding to your reviews.

Traceybuie: Thank you for reviewing! That is true, but that is in the nature of both the Pack and Isabella; the pack as it is their nature to destroy vampires and Isabella as she has been trained to expect the worst. As for the mystery supporter, it will be revealed but not until the last few chapters.

Hopestreet: Hello! Thanks for your review! As for your question about the keep him close, it is up to the readers for them to decide who they think he is referring to. And interesting theory about Caius!

Guest #1: Thank you! Yes, poor Archie. Their love story is one I included from an original short story of mine into this one.

Alice: Thanks for your reviewing and clearing it up! Glad you enjoyed that chapter and hope you enjoyed this one!

TrillionSchiffer: You and I have had many conversations (Right word?) On this story and our different views. Too many to repeat here.

Guest #2: Thank you for reviewing! I hope to update Kai's story very soon! It is more difficult to get into than I thought because of how similar it is to this story, considering the training and all.

KiKi: Yes, he is. Thanks for reviewing.

1TEAMTWILIGHT07: Sorry for the long wait!

~Asher ~


	26. Chapter 26

~ Isabella's POV ~

* * *

Kai appeared in the doorway to the bathroom, sliding on his leather jacket as he prepared to leave. "You still smell of smoke, you know?" He commented as I stepped out of the shower, rolling my eyes. I snatched up the towel I'd left on the warm radiator and began running it through my hair.

"That was my second shower of the day, I'm not taking a third," I told him, wiping the steam from the mirror and catching his reflection admiring my behind. "Besides, you only want me to remain naked."

At this, he laughed. "Your tone insinuates I'm trying to keep it secret?" Stepping forward he slid his arms around my waist and leaned in to press a kiss to my throat. I was suddenly aware of how close his hands – his fingers – were to my crotch and an ache ran through me. I considered taking his hand and moving it further but before I could he stopped himself and stepped away.

"I need to go. I'll be back shortly."

"You'd better."

"I will." He promised, and with a slap to my backside, he took his leave in a blur. It was only when I heard the front door to the building shut that I allowed myself to laugh. He and I were not _together_ together as we once were despite the fact I'd accepted them myself weeks ago. There was no denying my feelings for him, not anymore, but we had yet to fuck since before leaving Volterra. We'd barely even kissed. It was not as if neither of us wanted too – you could see it in his eyes that he craved to touch me the way he once had, and you could see in my eyes I longed for him too but with everything happening we hadn't found that moment to return to the way we'd once been.

And the right moment was important as I knew once we started, it would be near impossible to stop.

With that image on the mind and a smile on my face, I stepped back into the living room and headed for the bags by the door in search of something to wear. Kai had been right, I noticed when I caught a whiff of my hair – I did still smell of smoke. The smoke was a result of my sorting through the last of our belongings, and by sorting I meant destroying. Our essentials were hidden safely away in our bags by the door as they had been since Sebastian's surprise visit but everything else we had gathered in our time here had to go. There could be no trace of us left behind. All that remained were the appliances built into the kitchen and the plumbing in the walls. Other than that, the place was empty – literally empty.

I would never admit it to Kai or the others, but I was sad to leave this place behind. What had started off as nothing more than a room to store my things and train with Kai had become a home to me…and felt more of one than my chambers in Volterra ever had. Knowing that in just two days we'd be leaving this place behind forever left me feeling once again lost.

I threw on some leggings and one of Kai's T-shirts then took to the couch with a book but this attempt at clearing my head of such negative thoughts didn't last long as I soon caught the sound of footsteps climbing the stairs. Anyone else would have brushed it off as a neighbour returning home but I listened intently; there was no heartbeat. It couldn't have been Kai as he'd left only moments ago and anyone else would have informed me of their intent to visit. As usual, panic set in and I bounced to my feet immediately. My fingers bent into claws instinctively.

"Relax," A voice whispered, "It's me."

His scent passed beneath the door at the same time he spoke, and I loosened my tense body. "Edward?"

I opened the door and sure enough there he stood. He had a soft, crooked smile on his face and had dressed to suit the weather, sporting a long and warm looking black trench coat and leather gloves on his hands. Both his hair and shoulders were flecked with snowflakes.

"What are you doing here? Why didn't you call? Is everyone alright?"

"Ignoring the death sentence, we all face, yes, everyone is fine. May I come in for a moment?"

I peered over his shoulder and he was surely alone. Shrugging, I stepped aside and invited him in. He didn't hesitate to make himself at home, shaking off his coat and scarf; as he did so I tried but couldn't for the life of me figure out what he was doing here. I could only imagine he'd decided to spring a surprise training session on me and if that were the case then he was in for a surprise of his own.

"Well," He said, taking in the apartment and its bareness.

"Tell me about it," I said, tucking my hair behind my ears and resting my hands on my hips.

"You are all prepared to leave?"

I nodded. We all the knew the plan going forward. In just two days' time, we would leave and head to Denali so Eleazar and his family could gather their own essentials, tie up their own loose ends. It would give us the time we need to distance ourselves from Forks, for our scents to begin to fade. I felt guilty that the Denali's also had to surrender the lives they had made for themselves; I even overheard Carmen telling Tanya they would need to find Astrid a new home as it would be too difficult to travel the way we were to travel with a cat. Then from there, we would go East, to Egypt where Carlisle believed an old friend could aid in hiding us from the Volterra for a while.

"Are you going to miss it?" Edward asked, looking directly at me. It was as if he'd read my mind.

"Perhaps a little." I confessed, "But let's be honest, most of what was in here came about because of Alice." He nodded, and we laughed at this, our voices echoing. It felt nice to laugh with him, it eased away the tension that filled any room the two of us were left alone in.

"No Kai?"

"He's out handling the boring details of the apartment before we leave."

"You could keep it. As a safe place to return to should you ever need to."

"I considered it but instead I've decided to give it to Jacob. I know he won't leave Forks because of the Pack and his duties, but should he and Leah ever need a place of their own – or just an escape for a little while – they will have this place."

"That's very generous of you."

"Well, it's no longer of any use to me," I said, huffing out a breath. I'd decided to leave the apartment to Jacob earlier that day. It was the least I could do for him considering what he had done for me. Been to me.

"In that case, you did not need to burn everything you owned." Before I could ask, he nodded to my hair. "I can smell the smoke." With a groan, I crossed the apartment to open a window. "I mean Jacob and Leah's particular scents would've masked your own."

"In time…but I didn't want to take the risk." I explained. He seemed to understand and nodded in return. "I don't know how I'm going to say goodbye to him."

Surprisingly, Edward replied, "Neither do I." So, it seemed I wasn't the only one dreading that inevitable moment. You would think after so many years of watching people live and die that as immortals we would be used to goodbyes.

I did not give the uncomfortable silence a chance to return. "So, what are you doing here? Not that I don't enjoy your company but…" _But I don't enjoy your company._

"Yes, I know it's late."

"Yeah, the nerve to show up here at this time of night." I teased and smirked at the ground. He often did that when I made him smile. "What's up?"

He opened his mouth to speak but hesitated – worrying me that whatever words were to follow would surely test the structure of whatever kind of friendship we now had. "I-I wanted to ask if you would consider spending the day with me tomorrow?"

I paused, confused. "As in training?"

"No, not exactly."

I tried not to seem lost. "Then, uh, then what?"

"Well…we'll all be leaving soon, and it dawned on me earlier there is still so much left to show you, to tell you. I was hoping we could spend one last day doing just that."

"Um…just the two of us?" Just to be sure. He bit his lip and nodded. "I'm not positive that's a good idea."

"Of course, it isn't a good idea, but I can promise you it won't be nearly as awkward as you imagine it would be and…and I believe I need this for my own sense of closure. To finish sharing with you places that were important to you before we leave Forks and…Bella…behind."

I mean, guilt trip me why don't you. I took a minute, a human minute, to think about it and he didn't mind that. Neither one of us was going to pretend that what he was asking was casual or in any way meaningless. It would mean a lot to both of us, I was sure, but I couldn't help but be curious about what else there was to see, what else I had to learn. "I'll meet you," I told him and purposely avoided his eyes to avoid the look of joy he was surely giving me.

"That's great. I will pick you up around ten?"

"Very well."

"Goodnight." He wished me before letting himself out. Again, I waited until he was out of the building before flopping onto the couch and groaning into my pillow.

Kai returned fifteen minutes later with a smile on his face. "Everything has been arranged. This place is now the property of one Jacob Black."

"That's great. I need to speak with you." I blurted out, setting down my book and sitting upright.

He shook off his leather jacket and lay it down on the kitchen island as he approached, "Of course, love, about what?" He sat next to me and before I could speak he kissed me. Gentle and short, a simple hello.

"Edward dropped by."

"I thought his scent was strong," Kai said. "What did he want?"

I wondered how Kai was going to take this news. I assumed he would take it well as Kai was not the kind of person to throw a tantrum over meeting an ex-lover, but I couldn't be sure how it would affect him emotionally. "He wants for me to meet him tomorrow."

"Oh?" He sounded curious.

"To spend the day together. The two of us. Alone."

"Oh." He sounded disappointed.

I quickly explained. "He said there is still so much left for me to discover about Bella Swan before we leave Forks behind and since I'll be retaining her memories soon, I want to know as much about her as I can. It should make the transition easier." I paused then continued. "I hope that's alright with you." Both he and I knew that I was not asking for permission. I did not ask for permission. This was my way of softly saying that I had already made up my mind and I was going through with this whether he had a problem with it or not. It was my asking him not to have a problem with it.

I looked up from his firm chest on which my hand was placed to meet his amber eyes, they were more golden than my own. Shimmering. He was smiling. "Of course, I think it's a great idea. Whatever makes it easier for you when the time comes." He put a hand on the back of my neck and pulled me towards him, pressing his warm lips against my forehead and keeping them there for a long, loving second.

* * *

When morning arrived, I found myself eagerly awaiting Edwards arrival. I spent longer than usual deciding what to wear; for whatever reason, this felt like an occasion I ought to dress for but in what, I hadn't a clue. Considering that I did not know for sure what the day entailed, I did not know whether I should dress as any human would have in this cold winter frost or dress light and barefoot as for all I knew we were to spend the day in the mountains.

I considered what Edward said the night before. _Finish sharing with you the places that were important to you before you leave._

Doubting Bella Swan spent too much time in the mountains, I dressed to suit the weather in a pair of torn, high-waisted black jeans paired with a cropped grey sweater that did not hesitate to accentuate my natural curves along with a pair of thick-heeled black boots, my beanie and Kai's leather jacket. I headed for the door.

"I'll see you later." I kissed his cheek.

"Have fun." He said, "Or don't. I don't care." He called as I left, laughing as he closed it behind me.

Edward met me at the front of the building. I found him leaning against the Volvo without a care in the world until he spotted me, and his eyes lit up. I had to remind myself to remain cool, collected. This meant more to him that it did to me. He went to open the passenger door, but I flew past him and did it myself. He cursed my name.

"You could have been seen. It's light out."

"Was I?" I asked. He rolled his eyes, trying to remain as nonchalant as I was, as he slid into the driver's side and started the car.

The first place he wanted to show me wasn't that far from the apartment – we could have walked but when I brought this up, Edward told me the Volvo was relevant. The only way I could relate it to where we ended up was because it was a parking lot.

"We're here." He announced, stepping out of the car.

"This?" I asked, following him to the front of the vehicle. "This is a place of significance?"

He nodded and tucked his hands deep into his pockets. What Edward hadn't realised was I'd seen was the way his fingers had started to curl just as they disappeared. He was concealing a fist. For whatever reason, this place angered him. I took a moment to take in the seemingly ordinary lot, wondering what about it had such an effect on him. The only peculiar thing about it was its location; hidden down a private curve of road between two buildings, the only other entrance being a narrow and gloomy alleyway across the lot.

"So?" I demanded after a minute of silence, "Why does this place have you all riled up?"

He sighed. "You're going to think this is creepy but before Bella and I were together I used to…watch over her." Another pause, "Without her knowledge."

"You followed her? That is creepy." I wasn't joking.

"I cared about her. Needed to know she was safe, always." He was defensive but not angry – not at me anyway.

"What happened?" I asked, forcing myself to sound softer.

"She was on her way to meet Jessica and Angela for dinner." I recognised these names to belong to two of Bella's school friends. "Only she was late and took that shortcut." He nodded to the alleyway. "She was spotted and followed by several teenage boys." His voice deepened, his face hardened. "They tried to hurt her, tried to…"

"Did they?" I daren't make assumptions.

"No."

"Did you kill them?" I knew I would have and still would – animal blood is damned – if I were faced with his situation. If someone I loved that dearly was in such a vulnerable position, unable to defend themselves…. I would have slaughtered every one of them. _Mutilated_ them.

"I wanted too, and for a second I almost gave in, but she kept me grounded her voice…" He looked off to the right, I assumed he was watching the memory replay out in his mind. "She was frightened, obviously, but tried not to let it show. She didn't question it when I forced her into my car and drove us away. She trusted me despite all my secrets."

"I suppose you did the right thing." Only for the sake of Bella and his family. We waited there for a further thirty seconds before he shook away the thought and opened his door, a clear sign that it was time to move on. As we drove, he flashed a smile at another memory.

"What?" I asked, praying to Gods that it would lighten the mood.

"I was in such a blind rage that night. I needed a distraction – Bella expressed her concerns at my not wearing a seatbelt."

We chuckled together. "I'm guessing she didn't know you were more than human at this point."

"She suspected more but I never confirmed it until later that evening, at the place we're going to next."

* * *

I looked to Edward, so lost and confused. "Neither of us eats," I whispered just loud enough for him to hear after he asked the hostess of the restaurant for a table. He replied by arching his brows, a look to say 'And?'. We followed her as she led us further into the restaurant he'd taken me too; quaint and cosy, lit by white daylight streaming through the large windows and candles dotted around the place, centred on the circular tables. As she started left, Edward stopped and called out to her.

"Would you mind seating us at this one?" Both the hostess and I looked to Edward for an explanation. He draped an arm over my shoulder. I growled. "It's our anniversary, and this table is sentimental to us." He nodded to the one on the right. I lifted my shield as fast as my mind would allow; starting Edward as his head snapped in my direction.

 _Anniversary? Ha! You wish._ I thought loudly. His head dropped my way and he offered only a smile.

The waitress gave Edward a final, longing look. "Let me know when you're ready, Hun." And she sashayed away. I waited for Edward to speak, to explain why we were wasting our time here but Edward took his time, made himself comfortable by taking off his coat to reveal a tight fitting white shirt and folding it nearly over the back of his chair. I went to sit but he blew past me in a blur, pulling out my chair for me. A real gentleman.

"You could have been seen." I scolded in a singsong voice as I sat.

"Was I?" He replied.

I found myself pleasantly surprised and impressed by the level of Edward's sass that morning.

The waitress wasted no time, reappearing with a warm smile on her face aimed at Edward only. It was obvious she was attracted to him and who could blame her- Edward was hot. His dark, broody "Nobody understands me" demeanour was attractive…on a basic level. Though considering that lie he'd spouted about it being our anniversary, I got the sense I was not this woman's favourite person.

"What can I get ya?" She whipped out a notepad and pencil.

"Just two coffees, please," Edward answered, smiling softly at her.

"Ya'll don't want nothing to eat?"

"The coffee will do," I answered, reaching across to take Edward's hand, interlocking our fingers. I could tell the moment we touched that I'd just shattered his world, thrown off whatever ruse he had. Through my peripheral vision, I noticed the way his head snapped in my direction, his eyes locked and focused on the way I caressed the skin between his thumb and his finger, as gently and as tenderly as a lover would.

The waitress walked away. The moment she was out of sight I withdrew my hand, tearing Edward painfully from this lie. From the look on his face and the pain that shone through his eyes, I knew I'd just made this, a thousand times harder for him. That had to be the first time we'd touched – in a non-violent way – since before I was…me.

"So, this is where you brought Bella after the attack?" I asked, folding my arms. Hopefully shrugging that off as nothing more than a bit of fun to tease the jealous human would make the space between us right again.

"I did." He replied, "With her being late her friends had already eaten. I insisted on staying with Bella while she got something and offered to drive her home. Bella, obviously wanting to question me, told her friends she was fine, and they left."

The waitress returned with out coffee's, Edward thanked her. I waited until she was out of earshot. "How was she?" He paused, wondering what I was thinking as he always had, "I mean, she'd almost been…"

I had no issue using the word 'Raped' but I had a feeling it would bother him. I did not want that.

"She was fine. Better than fine. She was angry but more so at me. She wanted answers." He cracked a smile, "Demanded them."

"And did you give her any?"

"Some," His smile lingered. Edward looked so much more human when he smiled. "But none sufficed."

"Why am I not surprised?" I laughed. We spoke quietly for a further fifteen minutes, sipping our coffee whenever anyone walked by. Edward went into detail about his night here with Bella. You would think one would grow tiresome of such stories but to my own surprise, I wanted to know more. I found myself asking questions I was genuinely curious about the answer to; Edward seemed pleased to answer them.

"This is the very place she discovered I could hear thoughts." Edward said after a while, "We went around the room with me telling her what was going through the minds of those around us."

"And she took the discovery of your telepathy casually?" I asked, sipping the coffee as the waitress passed, only to let it spill back into the mug and set it down. It was hot and tasted foreign on my tongue. It had been a long time since anything but blood had passed these lips.

"She took it very well, actually. As if there were nothing out of the ordinary about it. I kept waiting for a normal, human reaction from her, but none came. It just made it harder to read her. She thought there was something wrong with her when I told her I couldn't read her mind."

"She was strange, for certain," I declared, and he did not argue back, "You tell her you can read minds and she thinks there's something wrong with her?" I laughed.

Edward laughed, nodded and then his smile vanished as quickly as it had appeared – though not completely. A hint of it remained, there in the corner where he kept it. He was staring at me again, though this time there was a glimmer of something in his golden eye, a question, a wonder?

"What is it?" I asked, knowing that we were both fully aware.

"It's uh…those are the exact words I said to her that night. The _exact_ words. Are you…remembering?"

I thought about it and although this place felt familiar in an unclear way, I could not remember being here with him. I shook my head. "No, I can't remember but Kai said a while back that some memories or feelings may begin to resurface with all the work we've been doing and all the stories I've heard."

"It's a good sign." He said.

"I suppose it is."

That dreaded silence returned only this time it did not bring with it an air of discomfort. It was calm and mutual.

Still… "So," I said, rising to my feet, "Where to next?"

* * *

The day flew by and before we knew it sunset was upon us. They same time flies when you are having fun and that must have been somewhat the case because I had never felt the time fly as quickly as it had that day with Edward. In the hours that had passed us by, we'd visited several places of significance to the life of Bella Swan. He'd taken me back to Forks, to the High school where he showed me the lab he first met Bella and in further detail, explained the awkward conversations they'd shared before either one of them knew the truth about the other, he showed me the classroom where he'd confessed his plan of suicide to Bella should he have been too late to save her from James – Victoria's lost mate, I recalled – and then he told me how he almost went through with it. As he spoke, I imagined the scenario playing out in my head. I pictured Edward being rejected by Aro due to his rare and highly coveted ability – one Aro would give anything to have at his disposal. I pictured Edward preparing to step out into direct sunlight, a desperate human girl charging at him across a courtyard I knew well.

He took me into the overgrown, frost covered trees beyond the school, showing me the place Bella finally confessed she'd discovered what he had become. When she said the world aloud for the very first time. "Vampire."

As we walked side by side down the road to Bella's house, he explained to me about Bella's eighteenth birthday – the party. How she had cut her finger on a present which had resulted in Jasper losing control. It had been only for a moment, but a moment was all he needed to take her life. Luckily, he had been stopped. It was that close call that swayed Edward's decision to leave Bella and his love for her behind.

"Sounds like you abandoned her…" I judged in a singsong voice, he nudged me almost as casually as Jacob would. It was obvious to both of us it was not a gesture he was comfortable with but what also became obvious that it was his attempt at getting close to me on both a physical and emotional level. It's known that things such as physical contact and using another name in conversation can subconsciously persuade another person to open themselves to you. A psychological cheat I would not fall for. But would not fight against either.

Edward and I slipped back into the Swan residence - or what had been the Swan residence. It was only a house now, no longer a home. The place felt colder, lonelier. Charlie and Sue's scents were beginning to fade which meant by the time the Volturi arrived they would have no way of tracking them. I doubted the Volturi had any knowledge of Sue so there was no reason to believe Dimitri would attempt to track her.

I entered the living room from the kitchen to find Edward staring hopelessly at a photograph that had been left hanging on the wall. One of Bella and her father squashed together into a corner booth at some diner here in town, awkward, uncomfortable smiles forced showing clearly on both of their faces. Sue must have taken the photo. Despite their obvious dislike of being in the photo, it failed to take away from its intent; to show a father and daughter together, happy, alive. To preserve the memory.

"It was a smart idea to get Charlie out when we did," Edward said.

"I'm full of clever ideas. I'm not just a pretty face,"

"No, you're not." The corner of his mouth lifted as he turned away, heading for the stairs. As we took to them, Edward spoke again. "I was close by that day. I could hear Charlie's thoughts as he packed."

"They were unpleasant, I imagine."

"To put it simply, yes. But…they were impossible to read, figuratively. They were a scrambled mess of emotion; of pain and loss and confusion, desperation? Like how Jasper can sense emotions. I'm assuming it's because of Charlie, considering he is somewhat shielded as you are. I hate to imagine what he would be going through if he didn't have Sue."

"As do I,"

We stayed for a short while, sat on Bella's bed, talking. The mood lifted when Edward explained the story of the quilted blanket we sat on which, apparently, had been made from T-shirts by Bella's mother. She'd kept it with her in Jacksonville as it was supposed to be a graduation present but since she never graduated, Renee left it here with the rest of Bella's things.

He told me how on occasion, before she discovered the truth, Bella would wake up and catch him watching her only to convince herself it was nothing but a dream.

"You used to come watch her sleep?"

"I know, creepy, but there was something peaceful about it. I don't know how to explain."

I rolled my eye as if to say 'You don't need too. It makes perfect sense for you.' But in a way, it did make perfect sense. There had been times before when Kai had been – not sleeping, of course – but just laid there for hours in the quiet, solid like a statue and I had been by his side admiring him from every angle, in every light. The way the shadows cast by the fire would alter and sharpen his features, how his black hair glistened so, wondering how his perfectly frozen body could emit such life and warmth.

Kai.

I hadn't thought of the man I loved since I left him that morning. Not once. It meant nothing, I knew that. But I felt somewhat guilty about it. A part of me instantly ached to see him again, to be next to him. But I did not want this day to Edward to end so suddenly. I pulled out my phone and sent him a text. He replied instantly, telling me he loved me and hoped I was having fun. Exactly the kind of thing a decent partner would do. He was such a better person than I was. He always had been.

Edward laughed, and it tore me from my daze. He went on to tell me how many time Charlie would check in on Bella during the night and, due to Charlie's own shield, Edward barely had enough time to find a place to hide before he barged in.

"Almost like an ordinary teenage couple, hiding away from unapproving parents." I laughed.

"Almost," He echoed. Young and silly and human. I envied it.

Such stories were nice to hear and sure enough, it softened me up to Edward – but it was weighing on him. Since her death and Edward's obsession to hunt down Victoria, he'd built a wall of adamant between his thoughts and his feelings. As he and others had explained, his only goal in life was revenge. Upon discovering Victoria wasn't responsible and in some twisted way his mate still lived, he had no choice but to take apart that wall and grieve.

I suggested we move on, he agreed.

I headed for the car but stopped when his footsteps halted.

"Edward?" I glanced over my shoulder. He held a concentrated expression.

"This way," He said, tucking his hands into his jean pockets and heading for the forest.

"We're running?" I asked, following.

"Yes, Is that a problem?"

"Not at all," I lied, following him into the trees, frowning at the mud staining my shoes. _Should have gone barefoot_ , I thought as we set off running. For any human running in these shoes would be near impossible; of course, having the grace and balance we immortals possessed meant that despite the four-inch heels, I was still able to keep up with Edward as we darted through the trees.

Every so often I caught him glancing my way, watching me out of the corner of his golden eyes as if he were expecting me to fall or perhaps fall behind although…I suspected it was something more as the third time I caught him watching me, he was shaking his head as if in somewhat disbelief.

"Is there a reason you're staring or are you just being creepy again?"

He laughed and faced where he was going, hoping over a log that had crashed against another tree just seconds before I slid under it – ruining yet another outfit.

"It's just…. I'm still not used to seeing you run, let alone keep up with me." He called over the roar of the wind, "I used to have to carry her on my back when we explored the mountains. She loved it."

I wondered what it must have been like for her to be introduced to this world and see it in a positive light. When I discovered the truth about what really lurked in the shadows, it had broken me – until I became one of the monsters myself. But for Bella, this world had been nothing but an adventure to her.

An adventure she did not live to see through to the end. I was quickly reminded of this when we approached the destination.

I knew where we were going before I spotted the headstones. I knew because of the smell.

The scent of death was one I had become more than familiar with in my long, fictional life. I knew it well enough to be able to tell how long ago a person had died from the taste of their blood in the air, I could detect cancerous tumours and abnormalities slowly poisoning their host both before and after death, I could…sense the rot of rigor mortis and decay in my mouth when stepping anywhere near a body that was more than a few hours old.

And it was that taste that led me to believe we were heading to Forks cemetery. To Bella's grave.

It wasn't long before we came to a set of tall, rusted iron gates. Through the bars, I saw what appeared to be an abandoned churchyard, complete with mausoleums and broken gravestones.

"Is…is this necessary?" I halted at the gate, grabbing the iron bars and giving them a squeeze.

"I believe so."

I knew this could ruin my entire day but would not argue with him. Nodding, I opened the gate which cried a metallic weep and followed him in. As we walked side by side further into the graveyard, a fresh current of dread ran down my spine. Especially as he led me astray of the path and between rows of headstones. He knew the way well. As we walked, I kept wondering which one belonged to _her_. It wouldn't be the old and crumbling ones, weathering with centuries worth of age. It would be one of the newer ones, marble and smooth, adorned with floral tributes.

At last. Edward stopped walking.

And there it was. The resting place of Bella Swan. Simple, white marble. Expensive, I was sure, and it was clear someone was keeping it clean and polished, maybe Edward himself. The headstone read her name. **Isabella Marie Swan.** And the date of her 'death.'

"Marie…" The word fell out.

"Her grandmother's name. She didn't like it." He forced a soft smile I found to be unnecessary. He didn't need to pretend anymore.

"Did you attend the funeral?"

"My family did. I kept my distance." He nodded to one of the tallest trees in the surrounding wood. I imagined him up there, watching, grieving. "But I've spent more time here than anyone. Every day, almost every hour after it ended. Until…until we started our hunt." His voice deepened, "Still, any chance I could I would return. Any moment of…weakness, any setback in our hunt for Victoria – I would find myself back here, spending the night by your side. As hard as it was it helped, and it was hard. I…I had to sit here and watch you decay. I had to smell your body as it began to rot, listen to the maggot's fester-"

"Edward-"

"I'm not trying to hurt you. I-I just need you to understand."

"I do." I snapped back, "I do," Softer. I dropped to my knees in front of her, trying to keep myself from yelling. I pressed my hand to the dead earth and closed my eyes. "I'm sorry," I said to him.

And to her.

He dropped by my side, the weight of his body sending snow shooting into the air. It fell in clumps in my hair. After a few minutes, he spoke again. "You remember the first night we met. You and I?"

"Of course."

"That night on the road was when it all changed for me. When I realised that I'd been played. That you were still alive. I came here that night after you left, and I couldn't find you. I needed to know and suddenly it was as if Kai's compulsion had already been lifted."

He caressed the stone. "I could no longer sense you here. You were suddenly gone without a trace. If Alice hadn't foreseen it and come to stop me, I would have dug up your casket with my bare hands just to be sure. But then you came back, and I knew…I knew."

As I sat there I unwillingly thought back to the lives I had taken. Murderer, monster, demon. These words were not new to me, nor was the realisation that these names were all but true, but it was as if I saw myself in a new, unflattering light. I had to have taken a million lives in my time – that was no an exaggeration – but not once did I question it, did I allow the horror at what I had done sink into my soul. If we had them to begin with. In the moment, you can't. You are a hunter, a predator, feeding. Nature. But only half of those lives had been out of the need to nourish myself, the other half had been sport, practice, fun.

And for every life taken, I left behind others to suffer. I didn't allow myself to do the math.

"Are you okay?" Edward leaned closer. Not too close, but close enough to show me he was here.

"I'm ready to leave."

"Of course,"

I blew past him and back the way we'd come in a second. He took a moment before appearing at my side at the gates.

"Anywhere else?" I asked the first thought that came to mind, hoping there was something. Anything to distract me from _that._

"One last place," He said, "Then we can go home."

* * *

The meadow was small, perfectly round, and covered in a blanket of fresh snow.

I walked ahead of him until stood in the centre of it, circling slowly, admiring it. The trees here were nothing like the trees in the graveyard. Tall and majestic, filled with life and energy. Where the cold broke and cracked away at the trees in the cemetery, it failed to have such an effect here. Instead, it covered the world with a fine, decorative powder of glistening frost.

"This was our meadow. A private place for us, untouched by the world. It's where we came the day you discovered what I was. It's the place you first saw me in the sun."

"It's wonderful."

"I wish you could see it in spring. The wildflowers here are beautiful." I smiled imagining bursts of violet and white and golds.

He walked ahead of me and looked to the sky. He stood there, staring up at the moon and stars that had, at last, begin to shine, almost as if he could find the answers he sought in their constellations, but he would not. The answers he wanted were just as complex and terrifyingly distant as the stars. Nevertheless, like most of the stars above, the answers to his questions were long since lost.

I wanted to say something though anything I said would have felt forced and wrong. I didn't want that. Instead, I just let him talk. It was almost as if he had forgotten he wasn't alone.

"I hate this feeling." His voice was soft. "I loved you and I lost you; from the day you died, well, the day I thought you died, I wanted nothing more than to have you back in my arms, but you were gone. I had to settle for the only other option: I would come to you. I vowed I would destroy Victoria before ending my own life to be by your side once and forever more." I moved forward, ghosting through the frozen flowers carefully. "But, by some miracle, you did return to me." He went on. I could hear the glee in his voice, "I couldn't believe it that night in the road when you came out from the tress, standing in the streetlight, glowing like an angel. I considered the possibility that Victoria had ended me without my even realizing it and you were on your way to guide me onwards. Then I touched you, I kissed you and I knew you were real. You'd come back to life." He reached up and traced a finger along his lip, the memory as fresh in his mind as it was in my own.

"Edward." What else could I say? He'd exposed his soul to me just now and in that graveyard, much as he had the first week we met only this time…this time I felt for him. I could sympathise with what he was going through, with what he had lost. One thing I had accepted about this new me was that I did not want Edward to be in pain. I only had recently become accustomed to such emotions and was unsure of my ability to express them without making it worse.

I took a risk. I reached up and slid my hands around his shoulders and pulled him towards me, burying my face in his chest to hide the conflict surely betraying my features. He paused but only momentarily. His arms wrapped around me tightly and held me there. I felt him tremble, I listened to him cry tearless cries. I squeezed him tighter to my soul.

There we stood. A woman and a stranger. A man and the girl he had loved forever.

* * *

After an eternity, we broke apart.

"For the record, I've had the most amazing day. Thank you."

He looked me dead in the eye, smiling. "Thank you,"

I shrugged and started to walk away. "We'd better get going. The others will be wondering."

"Wait," He said, grabbing my hand and spinning me to face him. "Before we go…can I give you something."

I frowned, "Uh, sure?"

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small black box…

Nestled into the black satin lining of the box was a ring, sparkling in the moonlight. I examined it closely; oval shaped and lined with rows of round diamonds, a thin golden webbing held them in place.

"Edward." I breathed out. The ring was simple but _beautiful_. In my time I had adorned jewellery so extravagant and expensive enough to feed a small country – fuck, I'd owned jewellery expensive enough to sustain the Russian empire – but I had never been lost for words until now.

"It was my mothers," He told me, grinning as he removed it carefully from the box.

"Um…it's beautiful." _Now put it away,_ I thought. _Don't ruin this._

"It's for you," I started shaking my head impossibly fast, chuckling nervously into the quiet. I even took a step back.

"Listen, I'm sorry if you took something from that but I – I'm with _Kai_! And do you really think _now_ is the best time to be purposing to anyone!"

He threw his head back and laughed, loud enough to disturb the snow. I continued to force out a chuckle, preparing to bolt.

"I'm not asking you to marry me! _Our_ engagement died with you. I only ask-"

" _Our_ engagement! We were _engaged_!"

He rolled his eyes, "Unofficially, yes. I…I never got a solid answer before…" His eyes darkened, body stiffened at the memory of losing her. "I only ask…you keep it safe." He held it out to me.

I starred at the ring as if it were a promise despite the words he'd just said.

"Edward-"

"Bella. It belongs to you. It always has. It always will."

I shook my head, trying to make sense of this. What it all meant. What it _truly_ meant. I wasn't even mad he called me Bella.

He lifted my chin with his finger. I sucked in a breath. "Please?"

His phone began to ring.

I couldn't help but stare at his chest. He didn't take his eyes off me. For a moment I thought he was going to let it ring but on the third, he withdrew it.

"Alice." He answered the call with a shaky breath. From this spot in the meadow, my face was hidden in shadows – and though I knew he could still read my features I hoped they were somewhat hard to read. "Can I call you back in a moment?"

" _Shut up and listen to me!_ " She roared. Recognising the genuine fear in her voice, I looked to Edward. He was staring at me with a panicked expression. " _It's Victoria!_ " Alice blurted out. " _She's close and she's coming for Isabella!_ "

* * *

~Asher's Note ~

Hello! So, in the last chapter, I said I hoped to update soon – as I always do – but that time I meant it. Surprise, life got in the way! Alas, here is the next chapter and I am praying to the old Gods and the New that someone is still reading ha-ha! So, this chapter follows Edward and Isabella's day together, bonding, getting to know one another closer and exploring places that meant something to them. Nothing major happens which may disappoint some, but I hope you enjoyed the ending! Cliff-hanger!

Also, someone asked who I imagine as Kai. It's tricky but I imagine Kai to look loosely somewhat like the model Sean O'Pry. Just a little more rugged. The image that first drew me to the character of Kai is this one:

.

If it works.

* * *

Responding to your reviews.

Goldielover: Hello! Long time no see! How are you? Thank you for reviewing! Again, I'm glad to be uploading to ha-ha. As for the causalities, the first should be in the next chapter. Maybe. It's all going to blow up from here on.

Traceybuie: Thank you for reviewing! How have you been? That pretty much is their plan. What else can they do? They are not nearly as powerful as the Volturi so until they are they need to run, to stay alive. Their plan was to visit a friend of Carlisle's in Egypt, Amun! Whether or not they ever get there is a different matter. I'm curious about your views on Edward now.

DxGRAYxMan: Hello! Thanks for your review! As for Kai's death, who knows! Wait and see.

Alice: Alice! How have you been! Sorry for the wait! Not a greatly dramatic chapter but there will be much more from now on!

GracefulKlutz1983: Hello! Thanks for your review! I really want a fight and a fight would be cool, but I doubt it would happen like it would in breaking dawn. In Breaking Dawn, the only reason so many allies stood with the Cullen's is that they were there first as Witnesses to attest to Renesmee being a Hybrid and not an immortal child. Very few came with the intention or desire to fight. In this tale, there is no Renesmee hence no reason for allies to come. Even friends of the Cullen's are not stupid enough to stand against the Volturi, especially not for Isabella and especially without an army. Interesting theory on Dimitri being the one to help her. That will eventually be revealed closer to the end of the story. Thank you!

Guest #1: Thank you for reviewing! I'll check it out sometime!

~Asher ~


	27. Chapter 27

~ Isabella's POV ~

* * *

I started to run.

"Isabella! Isabella, wait!" Edward's voice called after me, but I chose to ignore it, already deep into the forest by the time he had decided to follow. I ran as fast as my legs would take me, recklessly, and without any regard for the world around me; uprooting ancient trees with the bat of a hand and digging up great mounds of earth with each stride.

As I ran absent-mindedly into the further, it dawned on me I had no idea where to begin searching for Victoria. I had been too blinded by my bloodlust to bother sticking around to catch any important information Alice had given Edward after I had left him in the meadow – although she could not have given him much considering how soon he had started to follow. No, my best luck was to head towards town in hopes of picking up her scent. I knew I would recognize it should I happen to cross it again.

"Isabella, wait a moment, please!" Edward begged, appearing at my side.

"We don't have time, Edward."

"Yes, we do!" He exclaimed, narrowly avoiding the tree trunk I had accidentally batted his way.

"You heard Alice," I argued, "She's close!"

Victoria was close.

Why she had decided now to return and kill me, I hadn't a clue, but I saw it as the perfect opportunity to end Victoria while we had the chance. Ending her life tonight would mean not having to worry about her tomorrow. Then we could worry about the real enemy in this story, Aro. It would appear Edward chose to see it alternatively.

"Talk to me, what's your plan?" He asked.

"Find her and kill her," It was a simple plan.

"That is not a plan!"

"It was your plan for two years,"

At this remark, he only groaned.

"I failed at that plan. It is no coincidence Victoria appears now just as we are about to leave Forks. Why strike again at all? She knows how many of us there are now, how difficult it would be to even get close to you."

"I don't care what her plan is," I told him, "All I care about is finding her and tearing her to shreds before she can do the same to one of us."

My desire to kill Victoria felt more personal now than it had before. Originally, my hunt had been based solely on Aro's command – or what I had believed to be his command at the time – and I couldn't have cared less who she was or what she had done to deserve to burn, all that had mattered had been pleasing my master…

But now, now I had a reason to fight. I had people in my life whose survival suddenly mattered to me more than my own and this realization was enough to shock me into a desire to kill.

Edward bit his lip, an argument running through his head, no doubt. But it was not what came out. "Okay, then we do this together."

I looked him in the eyes and gave a firm nod, "Together."

* * *

It wasn't long before we picked up her scent, having it fresh in our minds only fuelled both mine and Edward's desire to seek vengeance and within a few minutes, we had tracked it to a waterfall. The very waterfall I had crossed in my pursuit of Victoria my first night in Forks. So that was her plan, I thought as we launched ourselves over the edge. Victoria would not need to find me as she knew I would find her.

As we ran I found myself thinking about the others. I could not help but see their faces in my mind, watch as my cruel imagination taunted me with images of their demise by Victoria's hand. Screams I had heard from my own victims of the past echoed through their mouths as they wept, as they burned. But there were fourteen of us and only one of her, not to mention the Pack whom surely were out hunting Victoria as we were. Though despite this knowledge I knew we would be the ones to find her. And we were.

We slowed as we approached a clearing, a dead end where the trees met the mountains. It was uncomfortably quiet, the only sound being that of the wind whispering between the trees, the soft ruffle of our clothing and the snow crunching beneath our boots. Even the storm that had persisted the last few weeks seemed to halt, watching.

It was in this clearing Victoria stood, waiting. She watched closely as we walked at a human pace out of the shadows and into the moonlight She looked just as she had the day we first met, clad in dark but loose-fitting clothing – perfect for running. The only colour came in the form of her untamed fiery hair and blood-stained eyes.

Eyes I had not seen in a short while.

"We're sorry to keep you waiting," I said coming to a stop fifty yard away, "Been here long?"

"Only a few minutes," She replied in that deceptive, child-like voice.

"And what of your friend?" asked, "How long has he been hiding in that tree?" I jerked my thumb to the tree to our right, in which a male vampire who's scent I failed to recognize was attempting to blend into the shadows. "I imagine quite some time considering how faded his scent has become."

Both Edward and I had noticed him upon our arrival, acknowledging his presence with only a look as to not tip off we knew he was there too early.

Victoria cracked a smile, "A few days," She answered. It was a clever idea of her to send someone ahead to hide a few days early, it would have been the only way for him to have ambushed us without us detecting his scent immediately upon arrival. Although she hadn't expected Edward to have come with me and hear the stranger's thoughts. Also, I would have sensed him regardless. She truly did not know the extent of my talents.

The male dropped from the trees. I failed to recognize the immortal she had brought with her; he appeared to be in his early twenties physically but there was also a sense of youthfulness about him, an innocence I knew better than to believe. A Newborn. His movements too loose and careless to be experienced.

"And you are?" I asked. The Newborn chose to ignore me. He stepped in front of Victoria instinctively.

"This is Riley Biers," Edward answered. At this, Riley's head snapped in Edward's direction and he barred his teeth.

"So, you're Riley," I sang, "I wondered when I'd be meeting you." On the jet from Pisa to London, Sebastian had informed me of Victoria's companion. He hadn't mentioned him by name, but I had known Victoria had taken a Newborn under her wing as her ward, her companion, her new lover. And that's all he was to her. It was no question in my mind he had genuine feelings for Victoria; You could see it in the way he positioned himself between Victoria and I – just as Edward was unconsciously doing with Riley and me. "I'm Isabella, by the way."

"I know who you are," He growled.

"My reputation precedes me, I see,"

"You…you are not the same Bella Swan," Victoria announced, making an observation.

"Far from it,"

She thought for a second, "Aro?"

I gave a careless shrug. She looked displeased.

"Not Bella enough for you?" Edward asked. Victoria's eyes locked onto his own, narrowing. Understandable considering Edward ended the existence of her mate.

"She'll do."

"Can I kill them now?" Riley glanced sideways at Victoria.

"Riley," Edward said, and Riley spun back to face him, "You don't have to do this," His soft voice was compelling, almost hypnotic. "There is no reason for you to die tonight. Not for her. She's using you. She wants a fight because she wants me to kill you. That way she doesn't have to keep up the pretence of your love."

"Pretence?" Riley exclaimed, "We are in love." It sounded as if we were not the only ones he was trying to convince.

"I know you love her, I can see you do but she does not love you," Edward said and confusion swept over Riley's face. I stepped around Edward's leg, moving forward a few inches and at this, Riley automatically compensated with an adjustment of his own, not allowing for any space between Victoria and I to lessen.

"She loved a vampire called James," I said looking at Victoria who was trying to keep her expressions neutral, "He was her true mate and Edward killed him. Why do you think she so desperately wants to kill me? It's because I was Edward's mate." I tried no to focus on the fact this was my first time acknowledging that fact aloud and not arguing it, "An eye for an eye."

"Lies," Victoria interrupted in a voice just as compelling.

"They are not lies." Edward said, "There are other ways to live than the ways she has shown you. It's not all lies and blood. You can walk away from this and live the life you were supposed to live before she stole it from you. You have a choice. There is always a choice"

"I can attest to that," I added.

Riley's body seemed to relax, his eyes drifted to the snow that fell from the sky. I knew at what he saw. I still remembered my first time seeing snow with these eyes, being in awe at how detailed and intricate the designs were. How beautiful.

The look on Riley's face seemed to say that we had gotten through to him and for a moment that thought filled me with hope. Never in a million years would I have thought to try and see things from his point of view, never would I have tried to convince him to surrender. It made me think back to each Newborn I had ever destroyed and made me wonder – could it have been avoided. It was in times like this I realized I still had much to learn.

For a moment there we had him. Until…. Victoria leaned in close to whisper into his ear, "Don't listen to them Riley, I told you about their mind tricks. You know I love only you," All the while she kept her eyes on me, smiling.

Slowly, Riley's eyes focused on Edward's and I watched his fingers begin to curl.

"Edward," I warned, reaching for his shoulder. The two of us took a step back as Riley took one forward. There was no question in his mind no, no suspicion, only unwavering love, and loyalty to the one he believed to be his mate.

"Lies," Riley whispered,

"They are not lies-"

"Lies!" He barked again.

"If you chose to fight you will die," I warned him. Victoria stepped to his side, smirking.

"He may not need to fight at all."

Edward sucked in a breath, spinning to face the way we had come.

"What is it!"

"We have company."

That is when I heard it. The sound of immortal feet stampeding through the forest, animalistic snarling bouncing off the trees, the sickly scent of blood and rot washing over us as they neared. Newborns. And a lot of them.

* * *

I counted a dozen. Coming at us from all directions. Edward and I had the same idea, it seemed, as we threw ourselves together, back to back, rotating slowly in a circle like a dance. Their silhouettes appeared in the distance; moving at a blinding speed towards us, some of them laughing at the impending battle.

There were no trying to save these ones. They were too far gone.

I lowered my shield, Edward gasped. "Together, Edward,"

I sensed him nod, "Together,"

And then the Newborn's attacked and the battle began.

A woman with platinum blonde hair and lips smeared red – with lipstick and or blood? – launched herself at me, nails slashing left and right. I avoided them altogether by dropping to my knees and diving forward to roll through her legs before she could strike the spot I had been standing. I bolted upright and felt the air shift around me, hinting that she had already turned to face me. I knew if I had tried to face her, she could have used the time it would have taken to get a hand around my throat and that would give her an advantage I couldn't allow, so instead, I slammed my elbow into her face, blinding her momentarily.

Depriving your opponent of one of their primary senses in battle would throw off their others and support you tremendously.

The blonde fell right into Edward's path as he ran at another Newborn, giving him the perfect opportunity to decapitate her as he passed.

I felt another grab my shoulder and I spun under his arm, grabbing his wrist and twisting it around my own – snapping it off. I wrapped his own arm around his throat and used it to drag him to the ground where my boot easily broke through his head. I wasted no second, kicking straight back up into the chest of another girl, the impact sending her soaring through the crowd and into several of her other covenmates.

A man had been watching from the trees and chose now to make his move, springing at Edward who was already busy handling Newborns of his own. I threw myself at the man and dug my nails into his eyes as we fell. The moment we hit the ground I pulled, and, with a metallic tear, his head shattered into two.

It wasn't long before the clearing began piling up with bodies and broken limbs. As predicted, Victoria had not taught these Newborn's to fight. They relied only on their primal instincts and brute strength to win their battles and in the past against other Newborn's they had probably succeeded but I had centuries of practice killing Newborn's and Edward, Edward could hear their decisions before they made them and act accordingly, making it near impossible to touch him. Though there were many of them, we had this. There was no room for doubt in my mind.

Victoria and Riley chose not to join the battle at all, watching from the sidelines. I knew given the opportunity to kill me she would take it, but Victoria was no fool. She knew she needed me weak and injured if she was going to get even close to killing me.

Only a handful of Newborn's remained. As I finished one off I prepared to take down the other but paused as a sound begin to roll over mountains – at first, I thought it to be thunder but quickly realized it was the Pack. Howling. A chorus of long, pain-filled howls that ceased to stop until almost thirty-seconds had passed, during which time everyone had stopped to listen. The battle only commenced when I flipped through the air and took off another head.

"What was that?" I asked Edward, leaping at the next.

"I don't know," I heard the concern in his voice, "Somethings wrong." Out of my peripheral vision, I watched him tilt his head to the sky before ducking back down beneath several pairs of angry claws.

"You didn't think these were the only friends I brought, did you?" Said Victoria.

An involuntary gasp broke my lips apart, my vision obscured once more by the faces of my loved ones. Victoria giggled.

"No!" I screeched, throwing myself at her but was caught mid-flight by Riley who appeared out of nowhere and knocked me back into the chaos. Edward dropped down in front of me and hauled me back to my feet, the two of us facing the last of the Newborn's, back to back once more.

'You getting this?' I thought as I lowered my shield again and sent him the move that came to mind. Again, I felt him nod.

"Now!" I screamed just as the Newborn's charged.

Edward spun on the spot and grabbed my elbows just as I latched onto his and I jumped into his swing, spinning through the air. One foot hit the first of the Newborn's and as I twisted my body, the other took down the second. My feet planted firmly on the ground only long enough for me to lean back into a squat, gather strength and momentum and then spring forward once more at the last two. I wrapped my legs around the Newborn's waist, tilted his head to the side and bit down hard. His screams hurt my ears but stopped as quickly as they had begun when his head cracked apart from the rest of his body and bounced into the trees.

Edward took on the others and I left him to it, knowing he had it handled. I decided to face Riley and Victoria who had taken this moment to join the fight. Riley was almost too easy to knock aside for Edward to throw himself at. Victoria, however, would prove to be a challenge.

"Come on, bitch," I muttered, and she swung. I ducked under it and retaliated with one of my own, one she blocked with her forearm. I repeated the move with my other arm and, as predicted, she blocked this one too. She only realized this had been my plan when I used this position to grab onto her arms and pull them aside, leaving no defence against the headbutt that sent her falling against the mountain-face. Before she had the chance to regain her balance I grabbed a handful of her hair and yanked, bringing her head down straight into the knee I brought up to meet it, once, twice, three times before throwing her aside.

She rolled straight onto the balls of her feet, snarling. In the reflection of her fiery eyes, I saw Riley reach for me from behind. I was quick to avoid it but the same could not be said for the foot he slammed into the back of my knee, rendering me on my knees. I felt his arm wrap around my throat. Knowing I had mere seconds to live, I dug my heels into the ground until I was in a squat and then jumped. We flew high into the air, our combined weight toppling the tree we smashed into and together we rolled down an incline in the forest. We fell apart as we were dragged through the hedges and dirt, only stopping when my nails raked down the side of a boulder.

Once on my feet, I scanned the trees for Riley only to find him storming the bit of hill we had fallen down. "Victoria!" He yelled. I listened to the sound of Edward and Victoria fighting back in the clearing. Not liking the idea of Edward alone with Victoria - especially with Riley on the way – I too climbed the hill. Being more skilled and faster than he was, I reached the clearing first. If it had been a second earlier I would have been given the perfect opportunity to leap out from the trees and take Victoria by surprise, but Riley tackled me to the ground before I had the chance; we hit the floor in an explosion of snow and dirt, snapping at one another's throats like wolves.

He stuck his fingers in my mouth to pry it away from his face – I bit them off. They clinked against the mountain wall. I kicked him to the ground and dropped atop him, digging my knee into his chest, breaking immortal ribs. I swung a perfect punch to the face, then another, and another, and another. Chunks of crystallized stone began breaking away.

"Vic-Victoria!" He yelled, sucking in a breath. "Help me!"

She disregarded his pleads and continued her fight with Edward. One I had believed he was winning until I heard him yell out in pain. I looked up to find that as he had been fighting Victoria, another Newborn – one that although was missing several limbs – had decided to return to the fight. She'd thrown herself on Edward's back before he had the chance to avoid her and, from this position, managed to sink her teeth into his throat.

"Edward!" I screamed. The Newborn then made a grave mistake. Instead of biting down harder until his head fell away as she should have done, she decided to let go. This gave Edward the opportunity to stick his own hand in her mouth and throw her by her own jaw over his shoulder to the ground. She landed harshly on her back, staring up at the stars until Edward crushed her skull.

He looked at me and nodded, and I felt my chest fill out again – that was until his eyes widened suddenly and he called out my name. "Isabella!" He needn't say more. He was warning me about Riley's recovery. I knew this when I felt an agonizing blow to the stomach that caused me to involuntarily double over his fist. He let me collapse into him only to administer another blow to the cheek and I fell to one knee. A knee he quickly slammed his whole foot into and –

Crack.

I lost my leg.

I only quite realized it when I watched it fall to the snow and I shortly after. A clean snap from the knee down. Before I had the chance to begin to think up solutions to this new and very dire problem, Riley seized another handful of my hair and slammed my forehead against the side of the mountain, breaking through several inches of it over and over until my own forehead displayed a cracked dent.

He dropped me to the ground. I could taste dirt in my mouth, along with melting snow and somehow…smoke. Smoke the wind had blown in. Someone, somewhere, was burning. I could see Edward running my way, only for his path to be blocked off by Victoria. I listened to the sound of their fight but could not see because suddenly I was on my back with Riley straddling me. Hands wrapped securely around my throat.

I had been so close to finishing him off that his nose had broken away entirely, one eye cracked, the colour shattered like a stained-glass mirror.

"You're. Dead." He yelled, delivering blow after blow. I knew I was losing my grip on reality because at that moment I thought about how beautiful he looked, backlit by the moon in the distance, his eyes wide and crazed but glistening like rubies.

Riley raised his hand to the sky again only this time his fist loosened into claws.

"Isabella!" Edward's distorted voice called.

Riley's hand came down.

In the space of a second, a thousand thoughts ran through my mind, a thousand emotions, a thousand images. I heard the voices of all the Cullen's, Denali's and the pack. I could hear their laughter and their screams. I could see Kai in the forefront of a memory I was positive was new. The two of us naked in bed, his voice whispering that his heart belonged to me. No, this was not Kai and I. It was Kai and Bella.

It was a glimpse of my past and a possible future. But I would never get that again if I died. I would never get that if I let Riley kill me. Instead, Edward would also lose his life. The Cullen's – or what remained – would mourn at the loss of their son. Kai would find that heart he had so willingly given away was gone, burned to ash. Victoria would live free and accomplished, Aro would be at peace when word spread that his Isabella had lost her life.

All of this if I died. So, I decided not to. No one would burn me. No one would mourn me. Victoria and Aro would not walk away from this successful. I had barely begun to live my life. There was no way in hell I was about to let it end now!

So just as Riley went for my throat I rolled to one side – his nails raked down my collarbone causing irreparable damage but still, I lived. He slashed again and again and but still, I lived. On his final attempt to take off my head, I grabbed his wrist with both hands and snapped it off; and with a scream so guttural, so inhuman, I thrust his hand upwards, through his chin and straight through the top of his head.

* * *

Riley's body toppled to the snow. From where I lay I could see his broken eyes still flickering, his fingers continued to twitch – but he was dead. I rolled onto my stomach, grunting at how difficult it was to move without the use of my leg. I could see Victoria snarling at me from over Edward's shoulder. He had stepped between us, protecting me.

She looked down at Riley by my side with more of an annoyed expression before turning back to Edward who spoke. "You won't get another chance like this again,"

"I won't need one." She whispered back before turning and sprinting into the trees. It took me a full three seconds to realize she was running away. Edward straightened his stance and dropped his head. He spared only a moment though before hurrying to examine my leg.

"What are you doing?" I exclaimed.

"It'll heal." He told me.

"Edward! Go after her!"

"But your leg?"

"Will heal, as you said. Now go and kill her before we lose her. Who knows how many Newborn's she'll have at her disposal next time. We won't get a chance like this again."

Edward knew this to be true but looked hesitant at leaving me here.

"I am fine, Edward." The seconds ticked back, each one feeling like a minute. "Go!"

He touched my shoulder – "Be safe," He said at last.

"You too,"

And he was gone

* * *

For the next few minutes, I lay there, leaning against that tree, watching the snow settle on the severed limbs of the Newborn's. I listened to the animals we had frightened away with our presence slowly return, not realizing one of the monsters remained in their home. I knew there was no time to waste, things to be done, people to be helped but I was in no position to move independently. I needed to gather my strength, allow my body to begin to heal.

I applied venom to my own severed limb and held it to the spot it had broken from, waiting for the healing properties within to take effect. Fortunately, it had been a clean break meaning very minimal scarring and hopefully a quick recovery. As for the ridges at my throat and collar, they would remain forever. The venom had softened and smoothened down the edges but like the scars on my arm, they were permanent.

I finally decided to move when I realized I needed to burn the remains of the Newborn's. Managing to crawl across the snow, I reached Edward's coat – which at some point had been torn from his back and dropped to the ground –withdrew his lighter and began setting limbs alight.

In their frozen faces, I saw my friends. What Victoria had said stuck with me in my mind. I heard it like a record on repeat. 'You didn't think these were the only friends I brought, did you?"

How many Newborn's had she brought to Forks? How had she gathered so many in such a short time? How many of them had my family been able to take out? How many of my family were dead?

I would not have to wait much longer to know. I sensed the wind shift, movement close by. Branches being snapped, snow being crushed. Someone was coming. My first thought went to Edward, but it couldn't have been him. I knew his footsteps as well as I knew Kai's. It almost sounded like two sets of footsteps. It could have been Newborn's following Victoria's scent, looking for their master. From where I lay on the ground, I was in no position to defend myself.

I dug my nails into the nearest tree and it groaned under my weight as I hoisted myself unsteadily to my feet. I leaned against it and dug my soles into the ground, somewhat securing a stance. Back arched, teeth bared, claws out – ready to kill.

But it was neither the Cullen's or Newborn's who burst through the thicket into the clearing. It was Jacob, in wolf form. That explained the two sets of footsteps. He stood for a moment, broad and magnificent, taking in the destruction around him. His eyes scanning the faces of the dead in panic.

"Jake," I breathed. One name off my list. His eyes widened when he saw me and leapt forward to meet me. I tried to walk but collapsed under the pain, falling against his body as he struggled to keep me upright. "I can't walk," I said, and he nudged at my stomach then jerked over his shoulder with his nose. It took me a moment to realize he wanted me to ride him.

"Are you sure?" With those muscles there was no doubt in my mind he could do it, but I didn't want to hurt him in the process. He nudged a second time. I threw my good leg over his back and carefully tucked the other into his side. When I wrapped my arms around the shaggy fur at his neck, he straightened.

I tried to lower my shield and put the thought out there to Edward that Jacob had come for me, but the pain was too much to bear, I couldn't focus long enough to find my shield let alone lower it. Jacob looked at me over his shoulder, a question in his eye.

"Let' go," I said and with a howl, he set off running home.

* * *

To my surprise, Jacob did not lead me to the Cullen's home. Instead, he headed in the direction of the Quileute reservation, or more specifically, his house. As we neared I picked up on the multiple scents blowing in the wind, Newborn's, the Pack, The Cullen's and Denali's.

Kai.

As he came to a stop outside his house, all I could see was smoke and taste was blood. What remained of his land was the aftermath of a battlefield. Several pyres were dotted around the grounds, a large hole had been smashed through one side of Jacob's house, what remained of his car was a mangled wreck of twisted metal and shattered glass. Unlike the snow-filled clearing in the mountains, the ground here had been stampeded across so angrily only dirt and blood pooled at our feet. The fires had been piled so high they turned the clouds above us an eerie amber glow.

The survivors of the battle stood huddled together before the largest of the bonfires. Black silhouettes standing out against the harsh light of the flames. The only indication they were sentient were their cries.

"Oh fuck," I breathed. Our arrival seemed to bring them to life and at once, they all turned to face me, calling out my name as they ran at blinding speeds towards me. The first one to reach me was the one I was desperate to see. Kai.

"Isabella!" He roared, dragging me from Jacob and into his arms, unintentionally ripping out fistfuls of his fur.

"Kai," I said, squeezing him to my body, wanting no space between us. I could feel him crying. "You're okay," He reassured himself.

"I'm okay," I ran my fingers through his hair and kissed his neck, wanting to cry myself. Jacob moved around us, so I could see him. I nodded a thank you and he walked away to presumably shift. The moment Kai let go, Rosalie appeared for an embrace of her own.

"Where were you? Where's Edward?"

"After Alice called us Edward and I went looking for Victoria, but she ambushed us with Newborns. We finished them off and she ran but he went after her."

"He's on his way here now," Alice said staring blankly into the smoke above.

"She's hurt," Carlisle said, noticing the missing part of my jeans and the crack in my leg. Kai leaned back to get a look at me, his eyes so full of anguish. I knew how he felt. He looked back to my face then took it the marks at my throat.

"I'll heal." I said, "Is everyone else okay?" Everyone had their own scratches and cracks but had left the battle alive. Well, the most of them had. I realized that the Denali's were not with us. "Where are the Denali-"

I cut off when I noticed them on the opposite side of Jacob's patch of land, standing beside a smaller, more controlled funeral pyre. There were only Three Denali's there. Carmen stood in the middle with two blondes on either side of her.

"Eleazar and Irina were killed in battle," Esme said, choking on her words. I found myself trying to take steps towards them, but Kai held my hand and shook his head, and I realized why. They were mourning in private. I looked back at him, at Esme and the others, my mouth hanging open. For the first time in a long time, I felt a deep emotional loss. I barely knew them compared to others like Alice and Rosalie but still, I felt for them, for the family that had to go on without them.

Jacob appeared ahead in human form, his body bruised and beaten. He saw me but looked over towards the house where several of the Pack were attending to their own wounds. Some still too on edge to revert to human form. Although every member of the Cullen's survived, the same could not be said for the Pack. Four members were missing.

The first was a younger boy – no older than fourteen – who's name I remembered to be Brady. Among the solemn faces of the wolves, his was the first I noticed missing. The second…was Seth. It was strange though as I could not see him nor detect his scent. Whether he was alive or dead, he was somewhere else. The same went for his sister, Leah. Although her scent was still strong in the air, she was missing. The fourth and final missing wolf – the one I expected to see barking order and tending to his Pack – was Sam.

Hysterical and uncontrollable sobs came from within the house. Emily. I listened to Billy and several others try to console her. Jacob cringed at the sound and squeezed his eyes shut but tears still spilled down his cheeks. Jacob turned towards the garage and I followed his line of sight. Hidden in the shadows by the garage doors were the bodies of the lost. Small and human beneath blood-soaked sheets. "He died protecting Emily," Jacob said.

"Jake…" I said, and he looked up. I didn't know how to give my condolences. I had never needed to do it before. I reached out towards him and he accepted the hug. His skin burned when it came into contact with my own, but I embraced it, squeezing tighter, wanting to take his pain if it meant being in it myself.

"Stupid bastard," I heard Paul say from where he was bandaging up Embry on the ground. "What was he thinking? Taking on three of them at once like that." I noticed he was missing teeth.

"He wasn't thinking." Jacob snapped back, "He was protecting Emily. Just like you would've if it were Rachel."

The thought seemed to shut Paul up. Thinking of Emily and Sam…my thoughts drifted to Leah.

"Leah?" I asked. I knew she couldn't have been dead, Jacob would not have been this stable if she were. Almost on cue, Leah began screaming from within the house. A mix of physical pain and emotional.

"She was hurt, bad." He said, "Our Elders are doing everything they can, but she won't keep still. They won't let me in to see her either."

"I need to help him!" Leah screamed, "We're wasting – Argh! – Time. Seth…he needs our help…Seth…" Her voice drifted and from the sound of her head hitting a pillow, I assumed she had fallen unconscious.

"Where is Seth?"

Jacob's features hardened to stone. Jaw clenched, fists balled. "They took him."

Again, a blow straight to the heart. "They took him?" I exclaimed, stepping back out of surprise. Kai was there to steady me.

"Three of the Newborn's. Knocked him out and carried him off. Said they needed him. Leah and I tried to get to him but there were too many of them blocking us off."

"Why the hell aren't we out there going after him?" I threw my arm up towards the trees.

"Because now isn't the time," Carlisle interrupted, setting a hand on my shoulder. "Too many of us are weak, injured, in need of medical assistance and blood. Going after Victoria or Seth at this moment would mean another fight, one I am positive we would not survive."

"We wouldn't," Alice clarified.

"Then we need to rest, feed then regroup. Then rescue Seth."

"I couldn't agree more," Carlisle said.

It was silent but only for a few seconds as Alice gasped and turned towards the trees. "Edward!"

He stood on Jacob's drive just taking it all in. The death, the destruction. I knew he was probably watching it all play out through the memories of everyone present. I could not have imagined what that would be like. I would not want to.

As they had done with me they hurried to meet him and ensure his safety. He looked as he had when he left me except for a few added scratches. I noticed the chunk missing from his neck had been returned and was slowly healing. When it was my turn to hug him, I pulled him in close.

"Victoria?"

"She escaped…for now."

"For now." I agreed.

Edward took the time to offer his condolences to the pack and I did the same when Carmen, Kate and Tanya returned to the group. Carmen looked…empty. There was no emotion in his face whatsoever. She didn't seem to register any of the words spoken to her. I could not blame her.

We stopped speaking when the door to the house opened and Old Quil rolled Jacob's father out in his wheelchair. Thankfully, the two were unharmed. Their eyes, however, were red raw from crying.

"Leah?" Jacob questioned firstly.

"Our healer is doing the best she can," Billy said and gave his son's hand a squeeze.

"Can I see her?" Jacob asked. Billy did not argue and let his son run into the house. Once inside, we were left alone with Billy and Old Quill. Carlisle stepped forward.

"My family would like to offer our condolences for your losses."

Billy nodded thanks and then looked straight at Carmen and the Denali's. "And mine for yours."

Carmen did not acknowledge him. Tanya dropped her chin into a nod, a thank you. Billy's focus returned to Carlisle and he rolled forward away from Old Quill to meet him. He lay a hand flat against his chest. "As Elder, and on behalf of this tribe, I want to thank you for fighting alongside us. Without your help we-we probably would have lost more."

"We made an agreement to be there for one another. We intend to keep to that promise always." It was apparent Billy had not been expecting us to keep such promises let alone himself. However, he shook Carlisle's hand.

"I understand this is not the right time, but we need to arrange a meeting. We need to discuss the motives behind the attack, plan Seth Clearwater's rescue."

From the log on which he sat, Paul sniggered. "We have it handled-"

"Shut up, Paul," Billy said, shaking his head in defeat. He had given up on this charade; he knew we were not his enemies.

Carlisle continued, "I suggest meeting as soon as possible, tonight. My family and yours," We knew he meant the entirety of the Pack. "My home is open to you and yours as long as you need it."

No one looked particularly eager to accept the invite, but it was fairly obvious Jacob's family could not live in that house for the time being. The safest place for the Black's was with us. Understanding this after a moments hesitation, Billy nodded.

"We will be there but first…. we need to bury our dead. And as much as we appreciate your help, we need to do that alone."

"Understood," Carlisle said, "But if I may…I am a doctor. I would like to help with your injured."

"I can see what Is happening in there with Leah," Edward said, drawing attention to himself, "You are going to need Carlisle's help."

Old Quill and Billy exchanged a look before nodding. "You can stay."

"Thank you," Carlisle said. He turned and began to wish us a safe journey home as Billy and Old Quill went indoors. "Stay safe," He said, kissing Esme. "All of you need to rest, heal, hunt if you must but be prepared. We are leaving Forks. Tonight."

* * *

Together we walked defeated down the dirt path leading to the main road. Kai reached and took a hold of my hand, squeezing it tightly. I squeezed back.

Edward stopped walking.

"What is it?" I asked, noticing his frown.

"I can hear…"

His eyes snapped open and he turned to face…Jacob's car? He flew towards it, grabbed the roof of the boot and tore it from the vehicle, resulting in a metallic growl and…a girlish scream. At once, we were all at his side and starring into the boot in which there lay a crying Newborn girl.

She was curled into a small ball, arms wrapped around her legs. She was very young – she looked maybe fifteen, dark-haired and slight. Her eyes darted back and forth until they landed on me and widened. Clearly, this was a face she recognized. In her eyes, I saw Victoria. I saw our dead and wasted no time in snatching her up by the throat. She began kicking and screaming, thrashing about but could not pry my hands away.

"Please!" She wept, "Please, don't kill me!"

"Isabella – wait," Edward said laying a hand on my shoulder. Out of my peripheral vision, I noticed the others exchanging looks. "Don't kill her."

"Why?"

"Because she asked you not to," Esme answered for him.

I frowned, wondering what in the world she meant, but then it hit me. She must have seen the realization on my face because she nodded and smiled as if to say 'There you go, you got it.'

Because she had asked me not to.

I thought back to Edward's conversation with Riley and how we had tried and almost succeeded to spare him. Perhaps where we failed with him, we could succeed with this Newborn. From the sounds of it, she did not want to fight. I eased her to the ground, bloodlust leaving me in a shaky breath.

She scrambled away, backing up until she hit the car.

"What do we do with her?" I asked. The others pondered this question too. It was Esme, of course, who walked forward to comfort the child. She approached cautiously with her hands up and a smile on her face to show she meant no harm. Even though she, like all of us, was a monster she still emanated warmth and love, it rolled off her. She was easy to trust

"What's your name?" Esme spoke softly.

The girl did not answer immediately. Her eyes continued to dart from face to face, then to the pyres around the garden which were more than likely made up of her coven mates. She only saw us as the monsters Victoria had made us out to be.

"As long as you do not attempt to hurt us, no harm will come to you," Esme said, "What is your name?"

The child's focus centered on that outstretched hand. Finally, she answered. "B-Bree," She said, and then, "Why are your eyes yellow?"

* * *

~ Asher's Note ~

Hello! I am here and back with another chapter, finally! This chapter was a lot of fun to write, much more fast paced compared to the last several. I really hoped you enjoyed! In this chapter, Isabella and Edward face off against Victoria and her army of Newborn's. I did take a lot of this scene from what happened in Eclipse and I hope you don't mind that. I'm curious on your thoughts on how it played out here in this story. In this chapter, we also lost several characters – and I mean that in more ways than one. I'm also curious about your theories on what will happen next. Much love.

* * *

Responding to your reviews.

Goldielover: Hello! I can see why you would think Edward and Bella are getting close again, it was intentional. Although the time for romance with anyone is not now. Though I'm curious what you will think of the end of the story – it isn't for a while yet – but still. Hope you're well.

Traceybuie: Hello and thanks for your review! Argh! Some people want Isabella with Edward, others want her with Kai! I know who she ends up with, I just hope the ending I have planned out pleases everyone aha.

Stelle's Pen: A threesome ending would be interesting! Thanks for the review!

Alice: Alice! Glad you enjoyed! Thank you so much! My creativity comes and goes as does my free time and I've finally found a place where they are both present!

Guest #1: Thank you for reviewing! I based Kai on the model Sean O'Pry, loosely. A more rugged version of him, obviously. He is very much like Dick Grayson! If Dick Grayson had stubble! I see why you would fan-cast Danielle Campbell as Bella, she is very Bella-esque. (Love her in the Originals.) Although she is not who I imagine as my Bella. In fact, I don't know who I imagine as Bella. I like Kristen Stewart despite her being a terrible Bella. She portrays a vampire Bella much better than the human one, and I think Kristen would play a very good EVIL version of Bella such as the Isabella from this story. Although I'm not sure. My Isabella was originally based on Katherine from the Vampire Diaries and because the characters are so similar in looks and personality, I could see Nina Dobrev as my Isabella. Who would you cast as my Isabella? I'm curious.

Kristie20: Thank you so much for your review! Ha-Ha! Glad you enjoyed! Like I said before, I know who she ends up with and I'm excited to see how others feel when they eventually get there! Hope all is well.

~Asher ~


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